Baked Macaroni & "Cheese"

(recipe from VegNews magazine)

4 quarts water
1 Tbsp. sea salt
8 oz. macaroni
4 slices of bread, torn into large pieces
2 Tbsp. and 1/3 cup margarine (I used coconut oil)
2 Tbsp. shallots, peeled and chopped
1 cup red or yellow potatoes, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup carrots, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup onion, peeled and chopped
1 cup water
1/4 cup raw cashews
2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne
1/4 tsp. paprika

In a large pot, bring the water and salt to a boil.  Add macaroni and cook until al dente.  In a colander, drain pasta and rinse with cold water.  Set aside.

In a food processor, make breadcrumbs by pulverizing the bread and 2 Tbsp. margarine to a medium-fine texture.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350F.  In a saucepan, add shallots, potatoes, carrots, onion, and water, and bring to a boil.  Cover the pan and simmer for 15 minutes, or until vegetables are very soft.

In a blender, process the cashews, salt, garlic, 1/3 cup margarine, mustard, lemon juice, black pepper, and cayenne.  Add softened vegetables and cooking water to the blender and process until perfectly smooth.

In a large bowl, toss the cooked pasta and blended cheese sauce until completely coated.  Spread mixture into a 9x12 casserole dish, sprinkle with prepared breadcrumbs, and dust with paprika.  Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese sauce is bubbling and the top has turned golden brown.

(This "cheese" sauce is delicious!  I made this with gluten-free pasta and omitted the breadcrumb topping.  Baking really dried out the dish, so in the future I'd probably just serve after tossing the sauce with the pasta.)