Step 1

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Step 2

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil for the pasta. Carefully scoop out a cup of water and pour it into a smaller bowl over your cashews. Soak cashews for 15 minutes in water until soft.

Step 3

Cook pasta for 7 minutes, until al dente. You don’t want your pasta to be fully cooked, as it will continue to cook when you bake it later on. Drain pasta and set aside.

Step 4

In a small bowl stir together all the spices and salt.

Step 5

Drain cashews and transfer to a blender or food processor. Add in the spices, nutritional yeast and 2 cups of the almond milk. Blend on high speed until creamy. Add in remaining cup of almond milk and blend again. Mixture will be thin, but this is correct!

Step 6

Toss pasta with vegan cheese sauce, then pour mixture into a baking pan (we used an 8″x11″ oval baking pan). Set aside.

Step 7

To make the breadcrumb topping, heat the vegan butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add in panko breadcrumbs and thyme and cook until fragrant and lightly golden. Sprinkle over macaroni.

Step 8

Cook for 10 minutes, then remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before devouring!!!!!!