Raw Bento

Sigh. I had a bad day. And it’s cold. I didn’t want yet another raw soup or salad or beans. I’ve been on a mission to get more iron in my diet and I think I’m suffering from spinach overdose. I won’t go into the details of my bad day because you guys are really here for the food.

I’ve always had this weird hankering for mac and cheese but to be very honest I don’t really know what an authentic mac and cheese dish tastes like. I think I just like creamy pasta. However, a big pause there, I always found alfredo or carbonara too milky or cheesy and could never finish eating a whole portion. I know, that’s weird. But I think I like the texture and the look of mac and cheese. Oh, and the saltiness. Mmmm, salty creamy pasta is one of my fave comfort foods…

I decided to come up with my own vegan version. I know there are countless recipes out there that try to crack this classic with a vegan twist and most people say it’s never quite like cheese because it ain’t cheese to begin with. Hmm, I could deal with that. As long as it tastes good, it doesn’t have to taste like real mac and cheese.

Check it out…

Recipe (in a high-speed blender):
1 cup pine nuts, soaked
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
Black pepper to taste
Big pinch of salt
Splash of apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic
2 tbs chopped onion
Dash of paprika
1 cup water

In a pan, stir-fry chopped onion and garlic in olive oil till slightly brown, then pour in the creamy mixture. Add peas and switch off the fire after it bubbles for 30 seconds.

Drizzle over macaroni pasta. Top with chives. Eat.

It was pretty awesome — this was a creamy, savoury bowl of tasty pasta, plus it was dairy-free and soy-free. I hate the thought of using soy-based products which are common in many vegan mac and cheese recipes, but then, I wouldn’t be able to get my mitts on a tub of Earth Balance in Tokyo even if I wanted to.

On that note, the non-raw fiance describes my aversion to soy as, “She has waged war on soy. Soy is the enemy!” LOL! Why do I not eat soy? Just read this article here. I had a bad personal experience — I drank at least two glasses of soy milk daily, plus one or two blocks of tofu per day and I turned into a blimp. I was puffy looking and everyone around me was concerned and dished out unhelpful advice or gave cliched comments like, “It’s just age” or “Stop eating sweet things”. It was a very painful time because I have always been slim so it was a big shock to me that I was piling on the pounds even though I thought I was eating healthy and exercising my butt off.

But this mac and cheese is not gluten-free, though. I used durum wheat semolina pasta instead. I could’ve boiled up my gluten-free penne pasta but it just wouldn’t have looked the same. Wish they would sell gluten-free macaroni pasta — I would be all over it.

I had to keep my rawbie side quiet for a while. Not only did I heat up nuts till high temperatures, I also prepared it with a refined carb. Fat and carbs are supposed to be evil. Whatever. I needed comfort.

By the way, I scarfed a banana with almond butter down before my mac and cheese was ready. I was too hungry and pissed to wait.

Yum. What are your fave junk vegan foods?