**The Best Nut-Free Vegan Cheese Sauce**

Today I'm showing you how to make the best Nut-Free Vegan Cheese Sauce. Not only is it vegan and nut-free, but it's also oil-free and paleo, making it accessible to everyone. This cheese sauce begins with wholesome vegetables, which will bring a creaminess without requiring any nuts.

To start, we'll use cauliflower as our base vegetable. Cut into florets, you'll need about four heaping cups - that's the amount in about one medium head of cauliflower. If you have leftover florets, feel free to dip them in hummus for a snack or blanch them and freeze them for smoothies later on. Next, we'll use butternut squash to yield that beautiful golden yellow color associated with cheese. You can choose to peel and chop the squash yourself, but when I'm short on time, I opt for pre-cut squash.

While the vegetables are cooking, you'll sauté some garlic in water. To keep the recipe oil-free, simply use a good nonstick pan and stir frequently to prevent the garlic from sticking. If you don't mind using oil, you can sauté it in olive or avocado oil instead. Once the cauliflower and butternut squash are done cooking, transfer them to a blender along with about 1 1/2 cups of the cooking broth.

To the blender, you'll add the sautéed garlic, a generous amount of nutritional yeast for that cheesy flavor, a few spices, salt, and a bit of canned coconut milk for creaminess. Blend it up until the sauce is thick and smooth. This cheese sauce is now ready to be used in our three different recipes.

**Buffalo Jackfruit Grilled Cheese**

I'm so excited to share this Buffalo Jackfruit Grilled Cheese with you because it's smoky, spicy, and cheesy - that's all you need for an indulgent sandwich. To start, we'll use one 20-ounce can of jackfruit pieces and shred it up until it looks like shredded meat. Then, heat up a skillet with just a tiny bit of oil and add the jackfruit for a few minutes until it starts to get brown around the edges.

While the jackfruit is cooking, you'll make the buffalo sauce by melting some vegan butter or coconut oil in a saucepan. Add some buffalo hot sauce, spices, salt, and a bit of maple syrup to balance out the smoky spiciness. Bring it to a simmer and then pour the buffalo sauce over the jackfruit. Stir to combine everything and add a bit of water to thin out the sauce. Cook the jackfruit mixture for about 15 minutes or until the liquid has evaporated.

To assemble the grilled cheese sandwiches, drizzle just a tiny bit of oil on both sides of your sliced bread. Add a few spoons of the vegan cheese sauce followed by the buffalo jackfruit. Top with another tortilla and here's the key part - when you add the quesadilla to your skillet, add a smaller skillet on top of the quesadilla. This helps continuously press down on the quesadillas so you get a crispy brown exterior instead of a soggy wilted quesadilla.

**Tex-Mex Mushroom Tempeh Quesadillas**

Next up are our Tex-Mex mushroom tempeh quesadillas, which are packed with veggies and have a concentrated tomato-y umami flavor. To start, we'll dice up a jalapeno pepper along with garlic and sliced onions. Normally, I recommend steaming tempeh before further cooking it to remove the characteristic bitterness in tempeh, but I find that finally grating tempeh actually breaks down the protein and integrates it into the other flavors.

You'll heat up a large deep skillet and sauté some sliced onions once they start to soften. Add the garlic and jalapeno followed by mushrooms, tempeh, and Tex-Mex seasoning. Cook until the mushrooms are beginning to brown but wait until the last minute of cooking to add the salt to ensure the mushrooms don't release too much moisture.

Add in some tomato paste for a concentrated tomato-y umami flavor and lime juice for a pop of freshness and acidity. To assemble the quesadillas, spread out some vegan cheese on a large tortilla followed by the Tex-Mex mushroom tempeh filling and a bit more of the cheese sauce. Top with another tortilla and here's the key part - when you add the quesadilla to your skillet, add a smaller skillet on top of the quesadilla.

This helps continuously press down on the quesadillas so you get a crispy brown exterior instead of a soggy wilted quesadilla. The combination of flavors and textures in these quesadillas is unbeatable - I'm sure you'll love them just as much as I do!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: entoday I'm showing you how to make thebest Nut-Free Vegan Cheese Sauce. Notonly is it vegan and not free it's alsooil-free and paleo so everybody canenjoy it. first I'll show you how to makethe cheese sauce, and then how to use itin three different recipes. first abuffalo jackfruit grilled cheese,followed by a simple creamy cheesy pasta, and finally a tempeh Tex-Mex quesadilla.And be sure to stick around until theend of the video because I'm sharing twosuper useful cooking tips. 1 how to getcrispy, never soggy, quesadillas. And 2, thequickest easiest way to make tempehnot taste bitter.This cheese sauce begins with wholesome vegetables. First, cauliflower which is going to bring somecreaminess without requiring any nuts.and butternut squash which will yieldthat beautiful golden yellow color thatwe associate with cheese. you'll cut thecauliflower into florets and use aboutfour heaping cups - that's the amount inabout one medium head, but if you haveleftover florets, so you can dip them inhummus for a snack or blanch them andfreeze them for smoothies later on.butternut squash can take some time topeel and chop so when I'm short on timeI opt for the pre-cut squash. I'm usingmy Instant Pot to steam the vegetablesfor just four minutes, but you can easilydo this on the stove. I have completeinstructions for both cooking methods inthe blog post which is linked below.While the veggies are cooking, you'llsaute some garlic. and to keep the recipeoil-free, simply saute the garlic inwater. but be sure to use a good nonstickpan and stir frequently to prevent thegarlic from sticking. if you don't mindoil you can saute it in olive oil oravocado oil.Once the cauliflower and butternutsquash are done cooking, transfer them toa blender along with about 1 1/2 cups of the cooking broth. and tothe blender you'll add the sauteedgarlic, a generous amount of nutritionalyeast for that cheesy flavor, a fewspices and salt, and a bit of cannedcoconut milk for creaminess. blend it upuntil the sauce is thick and smooth.I am so excited to share this BuffaloJackfruit Grilled Cheese with youbecause it is smoky and spicy and cheesyand hearty, and in my opinion that's allyou need for an indulgent sandwich. and Ithink you're gonna love it.You're going to start with one 20 ounce can of jackfruit pieces and you'll shred it up until itlooks like shredded meat. then heat up askillet with just a tiny bit of oil - youdon't need much - and add the jackfruitfor a few minutes until it starts to getbrown around the edges. while thejackfruit is cooking you'll make thebuffalo sauce by melting some veganbutter or coconut oil in a saucepan. thenadd some buffalo hot sauce, spices andsalt, and a bit of maple syrup to balancethe smoky spiciness. bring it to a simmerand then pour the buffalo sauce over thejackfruit. stir to combine everything and add a bitof water to thin out the sauce. you'llcook the jackfruit mixture for about 15minutes or until the liquid hasevaporated.To assemble the grilled cheesesandwiches, you'll want to drizzle just atiny bit of oil on both sides of yoursliced bread. add a few spoons of thevegan cheese sauce to the bread followed by a generous helping of the buffalojackfruit, a bit of blanched or sauteedspinach. finish with a few more spoons ofcheese and cook each sandwich in a hotskillet for about two minutes per side,making sure to press down on both sideswith a spatula so your toasts gets nice and brown.If you've been looking for a Nut-FreeVegan Mac and Cheese, this is the recipefor you. Super simple. I'm using rigatoni but ofcourse macaroni shells or any kind ofpasta will work.For this cheesy pasta all you reallyneed to do is to bring a large pot ofsalted water to boil and cook the pastaof your choice until al dente. Theneither drain the cooking water and addthe sauce or use a slotted spoon totransfer the pasta to a pan and add thevegan cheese sauce on top, tossing tocoat and warming everything through.Unlike your standard cheese quesadilla,these Tex-Mex Tempeh Quesadillas are afull balanced meal. You've got the protein rich tempeh, a veggie packed cheese sauce, someantioxidant-rich mushrooms. Of course you can throw some greens in there if youlike and as always you can use a wholegrain tortilla a grain free tortilla,whatever you fancy.To start on these quesadillas, I'm dicingup a jalapeno pepper along with garlicand sliced onions and mushrooms. normally, I recommend steaming tempeh beforefurther cooking it to remove thecharacteristic bitterness in tempeh, butI find that finally grating tempehactually breaks down the protein andintegrates the tempeh into the otherflavors you don't actually need to steam it.Next you'll heat up a large deepskillet and saute some sliced onions.once they start to soften you'll add thegarlic and jalapeno followed by themushrooms, tempeh and the Tex-Mexseasoning. cook until the mushrooms arebeginning to brown but wait until thelast minute of cooking to add the saltto ensure the mushrooms do not releasetoo much moisture. then you'll add insome tomato paste for a concentratedtomato-y umami flavor and lime juicefor a pop of freshness and acidity.To assemble the quesadillas spread outsome of the vegan cheese on a largetortilla followed by the Tex-Mexmushroom tempeh feeling and a bit moreof the cheese sauce, followed by anothertortilla. and here's the key part - whenyou add the quesadilla to your skillet,add a smaller skillet on top of thequesadilla. this helps continuously press down onthe quesadillas so you get a crispybrown exterior instead of a soggy wilted quesadilla.If you're a fan of quesadillas you'regoing to love my simple five-ingredientChickpea Sweet Potato Quesadillas, which are coming up right after this\n"