This roasted veggie mac and cheese is a creamy, flavorful twist on classic baked mac and cheese! It’s loaded with roasted vegetables and a rich, sharp cheddar and creamy gouda homemade cheese sauce. It’s an easy, family-friendly pasta bake that works perfectly as a holiday side dish or weeknight dinner!

WHY I MADE THIS ROASTED VEGGIE MAC AND CHEESE

You guys know how I feel about mac and cheese… in my opinion, there’s no Thanksgiving or Christmas without it! Every holiday season, I give myself the duty of making mac and cheese for our family dinner, and every year I tweak the recipe a little bit, trying new cheeses, new combinations… so, you could say that this recipe has been many, many years in the making.

I made this Roasted Vegetable Mac and Cheese because I love macaroni and cheese, but I also love vegetables, and I want to prove that you can have your cake and eat it too! This creamy mac and cheese recipe is perfect for the holidays, or anytime, really. I’ve been making some variation of this delicious mac and cheese recipe for over 10 years now, and this version that I’m sharing with you is definitely my favorite!

Making mac and cheese at home is definitely a labor of love, so I won’t lie to you and say that this recipe is super quick. You do need to chop up some broccoli, cauliflower, bell pepper, carrot, and shallot for this recipe, and then you’ll grate a mixture of sharp cheddar and gouda cheese that gets added to a creamy roux. Mix that together with some macaroni (or short pasta of your choice, like penne or rigatoni), top with additional cheese, and bake!

I shared this roasted veggie mac and cheese with my family, and they all agreed that this mac and cheese is creamy, tasty, and delicious. The roasted vegetables really add a nice heartiness to the mac and cheese that I know you and your family will love, too!

MY ROASTED VEGETABLE MAC AND CHEESE RECIPE

The full recipe for my roasted mac and cheese is in the recipe card at the bottom of this blog post, but here’s a quick overview of how to make it.

Be sure to scroll down through to view the full recipe and get all of the measurements and instructions below.

• Place the chopped veggies on the baking sheet, tossing them so they’re all mixed together.
• Drizzle with the olive oil, and mix again so that they’re coated in the seasoning.
• Roast in the oven, stirring halfway through. The veggies will be lightly browned on the edges.
• In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt 2 tbsp of butter on medium heat. Add 1 tbsp of flour, and quickly whisk the butter and flour together until the flour disappears into the butter. Whisk constantly, waiting until the roux is fully incorporated and smooth before adding in more flour.
• Slowly add the milk into the roux, about 1/4th of a cup at a time, whisking constantly to incorporate the milk into a thick paste.
• Sprinkle the sharp cheddar and gouda on top of the roux, reserving about 1 c of cheese for the topping. Gently mix the cheeses into the roux, giving it time to melt into a thick cheese sauce.
• Add the cooked pasta to the cheese sauce, making sure the pasta is fully covered in the sauce.
• Pour in the roasted veggies, and mix again.
• Transfer the mac and cheese to a greased baking dish, and top with the reserved shredded cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes, and then Broil for 3-5 minutes.

FIVE VEGGIE MAC AND CHEESE KEY INGREDIENTS

The full ingredients list for this five veggie mac and cheese is in the recipe card below, but here is an overview:

• Broccoli florets
• Cauliflower florets
• Bell pepper
• Carrots
• Shallot 
• Butter
• All purpose flour
• Whole milk
• Dijon mustard
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Paprika
• Sharp cheddar cheese
• Gouda cheese

HOW LONG DOES THIS MAC AND CHEESE TAKE TO MAKE?

The full recipe for this veggie mac and cheese is below, but here’s the gist of it:

• Chopping the veggies, grating the cheeses: 30 mins
• Roasting the veggies in the oven: 25 minutes
• Preparing the roux, and cheese sauce: 10 minutes
• Baking the mac and cheese in the oven: 30 minutes

Overall, this veggie mac and cheese recipe will take about 1 hours and 30 minutes to make, start to finish.

HOW TO STORE THIS VEGGIE MACARONI AND CHEESE?

After baking, cool the mac and cheese completely and store in a glass, airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Reheat in the microwave or cover with foil and warm in a 350°F oven until heated through.

MACARONI AND CHEESE FAQ

1. What other vegetables can I use?

I used a combination of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and bell pepper, but use whatever veggies you like! This recipe is pretty flexible. Brussels sprouts, zucchini, mushrooms, or butternut squash all roast beautifully and would taste great with this mac and cheese. Just chop the pieces so they’re roughly the same size so they cook evenly.

2. Can I make this recipe gluten-free?

Yes! Use gluten-free pasta and a gluten free flour blend for the roux. The texture of the sauce may vary slightly, but it will still thicken and taste delicious when baked.

3. What cheeses work best?

Every mac and cheese recipe I make always includes sharp cheddar cheese! It’s a classic. I also really like using gouda in the recipe for the creaminess. For any mac and cheese recipe, you definitely want to use a combination of hard (sharp cheddar) and soft (gouda) cheese. Other cheeses you can experiment with include Monterey Jack, Fontina, Gruyere, or Havarti.

Avoid pre-shredded cheese for this recipe. They won’t melt as smoothly.

4. Do I have to roast the vegetables?

Roasting adds so much flavor to the veggies, so it’s highly recommended. It also draws out the moisture so that your baked mac and cheese doesn’t end up soggy.

5. How long do leftovers last?

Leftovers will keep for up to 5 in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave or cover with foil and warm in a 350°F oven until heated through.

6. Why did my roux get lumpy?

This usually happens when the flour or the milk is added too quickly. Add the flour and the milk in small increments and whisk constantly, scraping the corners of the pot to make sure it’s all incorporated. A few small lumps are normal and will often disappear once the cheese is added.

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If you love this recipe be sure to leave a review! And feel free to reach out to me with any questions or comments via my Contact page. You’ll hear back from me soon!

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Roasted Veggie Mac and Cheese

This roasted veggie mac and cheese is a creamy, flavorful twist on classic baked mac and cheese! It's loaded with roasted vegetables and a rich, sharp cheddar and creamy gouda homemade cheese sauce. It’s an easy, family-friendly pasta bake that works perfectly as a holiday side dish or weeknight dinner!

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course, Side Dish

Prep Time: 40 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 55 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 35 minutes minutes

Servings: 10 servings

Equipment

• Baking Sheet
• Whisk
• Ceramic Baking Dish

Ingredients

• 2 c broccoli florets chopped
• 2 c cauliflower florets chopped
• 1 bell pepper chopped
• 2 medium carrots chopped
• 1 medium shallot chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 tsp salt plus more to taste, divided
• 1 1/2 tsp pepper divided
• 2 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp all purpose flour divided
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 2 1/4 c whole milk
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 tsp paprika
• 8 oz sharp cheddar cheese grated
• 8 oz gouda cheese grated
• 14 oz dried macaroni or short pasta of your choice like penne, or rigatoni

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Place the chopped veggies on the baking sheet, tossing them so they’re all mixed together.
• Drizzle with the olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper, and mix again so that they’re coated in the seasoning.
• Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, stirring halfway through. The veggies will be lightly browned on the edges.

  Set aside.
• This is a good time to boil your water and cook your pasta. Drain the cooked pasta, and set aside in a large pot or bowl. Cover the bowl with a plate or damp towel to keep the pasta warm (this prevents it from drying out and sticking together too much).
• Lower oven temperature to 350 F.
• In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt 2 tbsp of butter on medium heat. Add 1 tbsp of flour, and quickly whisk the butter and flour together until the flour disappears into the butter. Make sure the flour is fully incorporated before adding in another tbsp of flour. Whisk constantly, waiting until the roux is fully incorporated and smooth before adding in more flour. The roux will turn golden brown.
• Add in the minced garlic, and cook for a few seconds more, just to toast the garlic.
• Slowly add the milk into the roux, about 1/4th of a cup at a time, whisking constantly to incorporate the milk into a thick paste. The roux may clump, so make sure that the milk is added slowly and in small increments to keep the roux smooth. Whisk constantly, scraping the bottom and corners of the pan, until all of the milk is added. The roux should now be thick with few clumps. Turn off the heat.
• Now, add in the dijon mustard, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, and paprika. Use the whisk to mix the mustard and the seasonings completely into the roux.
• Sprinkle the sharp cheddar cheese and gouda cheese on top of the roux, reserving about 1 c of cheese for the topping. Gently mix the cheeses into the roux, giving it time to melt into a thick cheese sauce. Taste and add more salt, pepper, or paprika as needed.
• Add the cooked pasta to the cheese sauce, making sure the pasta is fully covered in the sauce.
• Pour in the roasted veggies, and mix again.
• Transfer the mac and cheese to a greased baking dish, and top with the reserved shredded cheese.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, and then Broil for 3-5 minutes.
• Serve hot.

Notes

I HIGHLY recommend measuring out the ingredients and having them prepped and ready to go beforehand. This makes it a lot easier to prepare the roux, as you will need to work quickly to keep it from turning lumpy.