This vegan mac and cheese recipes looks just like conventional mac and cheese but is dairy-free.

Mac and cheese is so popular with kids, that I get a ton of emails from parents of picker eaters requesting mac and cheese recipes utilizing vegetables. I always recommend using cauliflower, carrots, sweet potato, butternut squash, or pumpkin.

I used cauliflower in the white mac and cheese with mushrooms I posted a few years ago. But, that mac and cheese isn’t yellow, and doesn’t pass for the traditional cheddar mac n cheese that most American kids are used to.

To get a yellow color in your cheese sauce, mashed steamed carrots work a treat. Carrots also add a slight sweetness to the sauce. To get a creamy texture I always use a base of vegetable broth and raw unsalted cashews; for a cheesy flavor I use a mixture of lemon juice, nutritional yeast, mustard, and salt; and for a slight smokey flavor I love adding smoked paprika. Then I like to toss the macaroni with some finely chopped broccoli florets. You could always leave these out if your kids are greenophobes.

I shared this vegan mac and cheese recipe on the KitchenAid® blog to celebrate the launch of their new Pro Line® Series blender, which is now the most powerful blender on the market. It was available in the United States exclusively through Williams-Sonoma, but is slowly rolling out to other stores like Macy’s in the U.S. This new high-speed machine will launch in other stores in the U.S, as well as stores in Australia and Europe in November.

I know many of you absolutely love your KitchenAid® stand mixer, and now there’s a gorgeous high-speed blender that you can match to it. And, it’s the best blender on the market!

This blender takes blending to a whole new level, with the most power at the blade; the world’s first insulated dual-wall container (that heats soup faster than any other machine); a die-cast metal base (as opposed to the plastic bases of other high-speed blenders); a jar pad that holds the container slightly indented for ultimate stability; and a 10-year warranty. The other high-speed machines on the market have 7-year warranties.

I believe in this blender so much that for the first time in my career I signed on to officially endorse a blender as an ambassador. As part of my role as the global spokesperson for KitchenAid® blenders, I presented a series of videos taking you through all of the features, and I created two dozen delicious easy recipes to help you get the most out of your machine.

*I am the spokesperson for KitchenAid® blenders. But, my opinions are my own.