Oh my, this grain-free baked macaroni and cheese is so hands-off with a no-boil cooking method. It uses elbow macaroni and three types of freshly shredded cheese and includes grated onion for extra flavor.
I could (and maybe will) make this no-boil grain-free Baked Macaroni and Cheese every week for the rest of forever, it is that delicious! I went through several rounds of testing to find our favorite lightened-up iteration of macaroni and cheese.
Just like with last week’s Gluten-Free Lo Mein, I used Jovial’s new cassava pasta for this recipe. Their grain-free elbow macaroni performs incredibly well in this recipe. I know it sounds cliche but “you’d never it wasn’t gluten”.
If you want to add some tradition to your Thanksgiving dinner while remaining on a more Paleo (with dairy) or grain-free diet, this is the recipe for you! Want to make it dairy free, you can try subbing the cheese for a couple cups of cashew cheese sauce. It won’t get pull-apart yummy, but you do what you gotta do when you’re dairy-free and a cheese lover.
What’s in Grain-Free Macaroni and Cheese – no boil!
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Jovial Cassava Elbow Macaroni
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Almond Milk: unflavored and unsweetened (I like Elmhurt two-ingredient almond milk or homemade for the richest flavor)
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Filtered Water
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Granulated garlic and onion powder
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Grated white onion
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Salt and pepper
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Three kinds of cheese: extra sharp cheddar, mozzarella, and parmesan
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Unsalted Butter
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Pumpkin Puree: you can add more to make it more nutrient dense
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Simple Mills Grain-Free Almond Flour Crackers: for the grain-free replacement to bread crumbs
How to make Baked Macaroni and Cheese:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a 2-quart glass baking dish, combine elbow macaroni, almond milk, water, grated onion, granulated garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper.
2. Cover dish tightly with foil and bake on middle oven rack for 30 minutes.
3. Carefully remove foil from dish and stir in the cheese, 3 tablespoons of butter, and pumpkin puree until melted and well combined.
4. In a food processor, pulse the crackers and remaining 1 tablespoon butter until you achieve a crumble similar to panko bread crumbs. Sprinkle mixture on top of the macaroni and cheese.
5. Return dish to oven, uncovered, and bake at 400 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes until the cheese is bubbly. Slice and serve while warm.
Making it for a crowd? Double the recipe if you are feeding 5 or more people or want leftovers and triple the recipe for crowds of 10 plus. To triple the recipe, use two baking dishes.
Grain-Free Baked Macaroni and Cheese
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 40 min
- Total Time: 50 min
Scale
Ingredients
8-ounce box Jovial cassava elbow macaroni*
1 cup almond milk, unsweetened and unflavored
1 cup filtered water
1/4 cup grated white onion
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 cup freshly shredded extra-sharp cheddar
2/3 cup freshly shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1/2 cup pumpkin puree*
3/4 cup Simple Mills Almond Flour Crackers
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine macaroni, almond milk, water, grated onion, sea salt, garlic, onion powder and pepper in a 2-quart glass baking dish (or 8×12” but 9×13” will be too large unless you 1.5x this recipe).
- Cover tightly with foil (important) and bake for 30 minutes.
- Carefully remove foil from baking dish and stir in cheeses, 3 tablespoons butter, and pumpkin puree until well combined and the cheese is melted.
- In a food processor, pulse the crackers and remaining 1 tablespoon butter until finely crushed (not a fine powder – similar to panko bread crumbs). Sprinkle evenly over macaroni and cheese.
- Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees and bake macaroni uncovered for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven and slice and serve while still warm.
To reheat: Warm, covered, in a 300 degree oven until the cheese bubbles.
Notes
* I recommend using this brand’s cassava flour of for gluten-free you can use their rice flour pastas. I don’t recommend lentil or chickpea pasta for this recipe. If you want to add more pumpkin puree for extra nutrients, increase it up to 1 cup puree.
Looking for more favorites turned grain-free? Check out these recipes:
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Gluten Free Breakfast Pizza with eggs, bacon and spinach
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AIP Pumpkin Pie made without grains, dairy, eggs or refined sugar
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Paleo Stromboli with rosemary, prosciutto and a sweet potato dough (no cheese!)
