Bringing Christmassy flavours into Mac and cheese with this Leek, tempeh bacon and crispy herby kale version 🎄
Topping the Mac n cheese with herby crispy kale adds texture and a pop of extra flavour! My go to cheese sauce is creamy and cheesy without using dairy or processed vegan cheese, the perfect base to adding all those delish components.
If you’re craving comfort food, this one’s for you!
MAC N CHEESE WITH LEEKS, BACON AND CRISPY KALE
Servings: 1 hefty or 2 portions
Ingredients
Cheese sauce
- 3 cups 300g cauliflower florets chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1.5 cups 210g cashews
- 3 cups 700ml unsweetened almond milk
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 4 tbsp white miso
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp himalayan salt
- White pepper
- 1 large leek halved then thinly sliced
- 100 g gluten free macaroni pasta I used Sainsbury's free from
Crispy kale
- 2 cups kale torn into pieces
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp dried sage
- 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
- Salt + pepper
Tempeh bacon
- 1 Better nature tempeh bacon, you're fave bacon product or my homemade tempeh bacon:
- 200g g rectangular tempeh block slice into 9 pieces
- 1/2 tbsp oil
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1.5 tbsp tamari soy
- 1 tsp liquid smoke
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
Kale
- Preheat oven to 180c
- Mix all kale ingredients in a bowl making sure the kale is fully coated. Spread out on a large baking tray. Bake for 5 mins or until crisp. (It burns so quickly and easy so don't leave unattended!)
Cheese sauce
- On a medium heat sweat the leek in 1 tbsp of oil till soft, around 8-10 mins.
- While the leek is cooking, in a medium saucepan bung in the oil + mustard + miso + garlic. Cook for 2 mins.
- Add in the almond milk, cauliflower and cashews. Simmer on medium heat for 20 mins or until the cauliflower is completely soft.
- Bung into a high power blender and blitz till smooth. Adjust seasoning to taste, adding more almond milk to thin down if too thick.
- While sauce is simmering cook macoroni in salted boiling water to packet instructions.
Tempeh bacon
- Lay tempeh slices in a container with a large surface area. Whisk all other ingredients together and pour over tempeh. Toss to coat evenly. Marinade in fridge for at least 30 mins or up to overnight.
- Preheat oven to 200c. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Flip tempeh back in the marinade and then pop onto baking tray in an even layer (reserving marinade)
- Bake for 10 mins, remove from oven, brush heavily with reserved marinade, flip and repeat. Bake for another 10 mins or until browned. Once cooled chop into 1/2 inch cubes. This can be done in advance (you only need 1/2 of the bacon for this recipe)
Assembly
- Mix leek into the cheese sauce. Add tempeh bacon and pour sauce gradually into cooked macaroni till nicely coated and saucey. There will be about 3/4 sauce left which can be frozen or used in cauliflower cheese for example!
- Pile into bowls, top with crispy kale and devour!
Notes
Tempeh bacon can be made in advanced and reheated in a frying pan.Â
Cheese sauce keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days or can be frozen.
