Vegan mac and cheese

Bring a small saucepan full of water to a boil.

Add the chopped potatoes and carrots and cook until soft.

Turn off the heat, add the raw cashews and let sit for 5 minutes, or until the cashews soften.

Reserve about ½ cup of the cooking water, and drain the rest.

Add cooked vegetables and cashews to a blender, along with the ½ cup reserved water, non-dairy milk, nutritional yeast, salt and lemon juice.

In a skillet, heat the olive oil and sauté the chopped onion and garlic along with a pinch of salt and ground turmeric until soft.

Reserve ¼ cup of this mixture.

Add onions to the mixture in the blender and process until smooth, scraping down the sides if necessary.

Set aside.

Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil.

Add the dried macaroni and salt.

Cook for about 8 minutes or until the pasta is soft.

Reserve about 1 cup of pasta cooking water and drain the rest.

While the pasta is cooking make the breadcrumb topping.

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a clean frypan.

Add the chopped jalapeños and thyme sprigs.

Sauté until the jalapeños begin to brown.

Reduce heat to low and add the breadcrumbs, curry powder and salt.

Sauté until the breadcrumbs are crisp and brown, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and transfer the curried breadcrumbs to a small serving bowl.

Set aside.

To Assemble:In the same skillet, add the drained pasta and reserved sautéed onions.

Pour the sauce over the top, stirring to combine, adding as much sauce as you prefer.

If the sauce is too thick, use some pasta cooking water to thin it.

Bring to a slow simmer over medium heat.

Taste and adjust seasoning, adding nutmeg and/or ground black pepper to taste.

Transfer to serving bowls, top generously with the curried breadcrumbs and enjoy immediately.

Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.

While reheating, you may need to add a little water to make the sauce smooth again.