High-Protein Vegan Mac and Cheese with Butternut Squash and White Beans
Creamy, nut-free vegan mac and cheese made with whole-wheat pasta and a blended sauce of butternut squash, cannellini beans, soy milk and nutritional yeast.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Serves
- 5
High-Protein Vegan Mac and Cheese with Butternut Squash and White Beans is a vegan dinner recipe made with butternut squash, garlic, cannellini beans. It takes 40 minutes of hands-on time, serves 5, and each serving has 419 calories, 20 g of protein and 13 g of fiber.
You cook the squash and garlic in the same pot of water you'll use for the pasta, so there's no oven and only one pot to wash. Cannellini beans take the place of cashews and make the sauce thick and silky, and soy milk adds body without nuts. Dijon, lemon and smoked paprika give it the tangy, slightly sharp flavor of cheddar. Loosen the sauce with a splash of starchy pasta water so it coats every noodle.
Ingredients
Sauce
- 3 cups420 gbutternut squash, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
- 4 cloves12 ggarlic, peeled
- 1 can240 gcannellini beans, drained and rinsed, 15-oz can
- 1 cup243 gunsweetened soy milk
- ½ cup30 gnutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp15 gDijon mustard
- 1 tbsp15 glemon juice
- 1 tbsp14 gextra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp2.3 gsmoked paprika
- 1¼ tsp7.5 gfine salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ tsp0.6 gblack pepper
Pasta
- 1 tbsp18 gsalt, for the cooking water
- 12 oz340 gwhole-wheat elbow macaroni or shells
To serve
- ¼ cup32 gtoasted pumpkin seeds, for topping (optional)
- 2 tbsp7.6 gfresh parsley, chopped (optional)
- 1 pinch0.3 gsmoked paprika, for dusting (optional)
Kit: large pot, slotted spoon, high-speed blender, colander
Tips
- The sauce thickens as it stands, so keep the reserved pasta water nearby and loosen the sauce just before serving.
- A regular blender works too. Blend a little longer and add a few tablespoons of pasta water if the sauce is too thick to move.
- Weigh the squash after peeling and seeding. A 2-pound squash usually gives you enough cubes.
Swap ideas
- Frozen butternut squash cubes instead of fresh
- Saves the peeling. Simmer about 8 minutes, until soft.
- Chickpea or lentil pasta instead of whole-wheat
- Adds more protein and makes the dish gluten-free. Watch the cooking time closely, because legume pastas turn soft fast.
- 1 tbsp white miso in place of 1/2 tsp of the salt
- Adds a deeper, aged-cheese savoriness.
- Stir in 2 cups steamed broccoli florets at the end
- Adds vegetables and texture, and stretches the dish to 6 servings.
The numbers
Nutrition per serving
419kcal per serving
Everything else · 5 servings per recipe
- Saturated fat
- 0.8 g 4%
- Sugars
- 5.8 g
- Sodium
- 2061 mg 90%
- Potassium
- 1075 mg 23%
- Calcium
- 176 mg 14%
- Iron
- 5.9 mg 33%
- Vitamin C
- 20 mg 22%
- Vitamin B12
- 22.93 µg 955%
% Daily Value on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient; optional ingredients are excluded. Estimates vary with brands and portions.
Sources: Squash, winter, butternut, raw, Garlic, raw, Beans, white, mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt, Soymilk, original and vanilla, with added calcium, vitamins A and D, Nutritional Yeast Seasoning by BRAGG (fortified; legacy USDA Branded Foods entry as reproduced by NutritionValue.org), Mustard, prepared, yellow, Lemon juice, raw, Oil, olive, salad or cooking, Spices, paprika, Salt, table, Spices, pepper, black, Pasta, whole-wheat, dry (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program)
Method
Bring a large pot of water (about 4 quarts) to a boil and add 1 tablespoon of salt.
Add the squash cubes and garlic cloves to the boiling water. Simmer until a fork slides easily through the squash, 10–12 minutes. Lift the squash and garlic out with a slotted spoon and put them in the blender. Keep the water boiling.
Add the pasta to the same water and cook until al dente, according to the package time (usually 7–9 minutes for whole-wheat elbows). Before draining, scoop out 1 cup of the starchy pasta water.
While the pasta cooks, add the cannellini beans, soy milk, nutritional yeast, Dijon, lemon juice, olive oil, smoked paprika, 1¼ teaspoons salt and the pepper to the blender. Vent the lid, since the squash is hot, and blend on high until completely smooth and pourable, 1–2 minutes.
Drain the pasta and put it back in the empty pot over low heat. Pour in the sauce and stir until the sauce is hot and clings to the pasta, 2–3 minutes. Add splashes of the reserved pasta water until the sauce is glossy and creamy.
Taste and adjust with more salt, lemon juice or nutritional yeast. Serve right away, topped with pumpkin seeds, parsley and a pinch of smoked paprika if you like.
Storage: Refrigerate in airtight containers for up to 4 days. The sauce thickens in the fridge, so reheat on the stove or in the microwave with a splash of soy milk or water, stirring until creamy. You can also freeze the sauce on its own for up to 3 months.
Questions
- How much protein is in high-protein vegan mac and cheese with butternut squash and white beans?
- Each of the 5 servings has 20 g of protein, 13 g of fiber and 419 calories, calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for every ingredient.
- Is high-protein vegan mac and cheese with butternut squash and white beans vegan?
- Yes. It contains no dairy, eggs, honey or other animal products.
- How long does high-protein vegan mac and cheese with butternut squash and white beans take to make?
- 15 minutes of prep and 25 minutes of cooking, so 40 minutes of hands-on time.
- Can you make high-protein vegan mac and cheese with butternut squash and white beans ahead?
- Refrigerate in airtight containers for up to 4 days. The sauce thickens in the fridge, so reheat on the stove or in the microwave with a splash of soy milk or water, stirring until creamy. You can also freeze the sauce on its own for up to 3 months.
- What can I substitute in high-protein vegan mac and cheese with butternut squash and white beans?
- Frozen butternut squash cubes instead of fresh — saves the peeling. simmer about 8 minutes, until soft.. Chickpea or lentil pasta instead of whole-wheat — adds more protein and makes the dish gluten-free. watch the cooking time closely, because legume pastas turn soft fast.. 1 tbsp white miso in place of 1/2 tsp of the salt — adds a deeper, aged-cheese savoriness.. Stir in 2 cups steamed broccoli florets at the end — adds vegetables and texture, and stretches the dish to 6 servings..
- Does high-protein vegan mac and cheese with butternut squash and white beans contain gluten?
- Yes — the ingredient list includes gluten. Check the labels on the products you buy if you're cooking for an allergy.
Nutrition is calculated from USDA data for every ingredient — how we work it out.
Published September 24, 2026 ·American