Vegan mac and cheese creamy, minus dairy

For those who don’t do dairy but crave a macaroni and cheese-esque dish, home cook Jack-Daniyel Strong, of Spokane, recommends his vegan adaptation.

“I usually just saute a red bell pepper with onions instead of buying the roasted red peppers, which the original recipe required,” he said. “I also upped the nutritional yeast a little.”

His take, which also includes a little more lemon juice than the original, is below.

Vegan Mac ’n’ Cheese

Adapted by Jack-Daniyel Strong, of Spokane, from the recipe for “Macaroni Not Cheese” in the “The Engine 2 Diet” by Rip Esselstyn

1 medium yellow or sweet onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped (or 4-ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained)

1 cup cashews (raw or toasted, unsalted)

1/2 cup lemon juice

1 1/3 cups water

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

16 ounces whole-grain elbow pasta, cooked

Frozen peas, as desired (optional)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Sauté onion and bell pepper over medium heat in a nonstick skillet for 5 minutes, until the onion is translucent. In a food processer, combine onion, peppers, cashews, lemon juice, water, salt, nutritional yeast, garlic powder and onion powder. Thoroughly toss the sauce with the pasta. Bake in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes until golden brown on top.

Note: Whole wheat or brown rice can be used instead of pasta for a different version of this dish.