"Nooch" Sauce

  Cheese. Ahh just the word makes me happy inside. To say it's one of my favorite foods is an understatement, if I could eat it for every meal I would! A few weeks ago I started to notice a lot of texture on my skin. I'm someone who hardly gets a pimple so to suddenly have all this texture it was hard not to notice. Ask any nutritionist and they will tell you to cut out gluten and dairy when you see a change in your skin and see if that makes any difference. The "dairy-free" part of the deal almost killed me. After talking to my sister and several others who are either vegan or doing the non dairy thing they told me that dairy free cheese sauce was "so good" and "tastes just like cheese". My reply was I thought they were liars. How could anything be as delicious as cheesy nachos? Or as comforting as creamy mac and cheese?
   After a few convincing arguments (mostly from my sister) and some in depth Pinterest searches I finally decided to give it a try. SURPRISE! A concoction that tastes almost exactly like the delicious and creamy cheese sauce that I've loved for a very long time. With only a few new ingredients I was able to create a sauce that tastes just like cheese. No squash, No cauliflower, no nuts.
  The secret? Nutritional Yeast. You may be wondering, "What the heck is nutritional yeast?" It is an inactive yeast made from sugarcane and beetroot. This savory powder has a flavor that emulates cheese. It's low in sodium, fat, and is gluten free. It is also a great source of vitamin B6 and B12. So now that you know the benefits give this recipe a try and let me know if you think it's as good as your typical cheese sauce.

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons of EarthBalance Vegan, Soy Free Butter
1/3 Cup of Gluten Free Flour
1/3 Cup of Nutritional Yeast
1/2 Cup of Water
Pinch of Garlic Powder
Ground Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon of Mustard Powder
Chives

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a sauce pan add in flour to create a rue. Whisk together. Add in water and simmer until it becomes thick.

2. Add in the nutritional yeast, mustard powder, and garlic powder. Add in salt and pepper to taste.

3. Garnish with chives. Serve with chips or over gluten free noodles

4. Enjoy!

As you can see this recipe is super easy and quick. Makes for a great weeknight meal and can go with absolutely everything from pasta to tacos!

-Giuliana