WASHINGTON (AFP) – The most powerful space telescope ever built completed a tricky two-week-long deployment phase on Saturday, unfolding its final golden mirror panel, as it readies to study every phase of cosmic history.
Engineering teams in the James Webb Space Telescope’s control room cheered as confirmation came back that its final wing was deployed and latched into place.
“I’m emotional about it – what an amazing milestone,” senior NASA engineer Thomas Zurbuchen said during the live video feed as stargazers worldwide celebrated.
Because the telescope was too large to fit into a rocket’s nose cone in its operational configuration, it was transported folded up.
Unfurling has been a complex and risky task – “arguably the most challenging deployment programme ever done by NASA,” said NASA engineer Mike Menzel. On Saturday morning, engineers sent a command from the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland for the final section of golden mirror to unfold.
According to NASA, after the mirror was latched into place at 1.17pm, “the team declared all major deployments successfully completed”.
“I want to tell you just how excited and emotional I am right now,” said Zurbuchen on the live video feed. “We have a deployed telescope on orbit.”
Engineers and technicians assemble the James Webb Space Telescope at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. PHOTO: AFP
Webb, the successor to Hubble, blasted off in an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana on December 25, and is heading to its orbital point, 1.6 million kilometres from Earth.
Though Webb will reach its space destination, known as the second Lagrange point, in a matter of weeks, it still has around another five and a half months of setup to go.
“While the journey is not complete, I join the Webb team in breathing a little easier and imagining the future breakthroughs bound to inspire the world,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
Next steps include aligning the telescope’s optics, and calibrating its scientific instruments.
Its infrared technology will allow it to see the first stars and galaxies that formed 13.5 billion years ago, giving astronomers new insight into the earliest epoch of the Universe.
Earlier this week, the telescope deployed its five-layered sunshield – a 70-foot long, kite-shaped apparatus that acts like a parasol, ensuring Webb’s instruments are kept in the shade so they can detect faint infrared signals from the far reaches of the Universe.
The sunshield will be permanently positioned between the telescope and the Sun, Earth and Moon, with the Sun-facing side built to withstand 110 degrees Celsius.
Visible and ultraviolet light emitted by the very first luminous objects has been stretched by the Universe’s expansion, and arrives today in the form of infrared, which Webb is equipped to detect with unprecedented clarity.
Its mission also includes the study of distant planets to determine their origin, evolution, and habitability.
The NASA telescope blog said Saturday’s procedure was “the last of the major deployments on the observatory”.
BERLIN (AFP) – Jude Bellingham and Mahmoud Dahoud scored late goals as Borussia Dortmund came from behind to seal a dramatic 3-2 win at Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday and cut COVID-hit Bayern Munich’s lead to six points at the top of the Bundesliga.
“We reacted well throughout the second half and got an awesome, emotional win,” said Dortmund defender Mats Hummels.
With nine players sidelined by Covid, a makeshift Bayern side lost 2-1 at home to Gladbach on Friday but second-placed Dortmund left it late in Frankfurt.
Eintracht raced into an early 2-0 lead with Colombia striker Rafael Borre scoring both goals before Dortmund pulled one back with 19 minutes left.
“The word ‘stability’ has to be at the top of our list if we want to have a chance of winning anything this season,” Hummels admitted, referring to the goals conceded.
Erling Haaland sparked Dortmund’s recovery by setting up Thorgan Hazard to halve the deficit.
Bellingham levelled with four minutes left by heading past Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp before Dahoud curled in the winner from the edge of the area just before the final whistle.
Frankfurt’s Dutch midfielder Sam Lammers and Dortmund’s German defender Mats Hummels jump for the ball. PHOTO: AFP
“These victories have a special taste and we believed in it as a team – but we have to stop talking about Bayern,” said Emre Can, after Dortmund’s first win in Frankfurt since 2013.
Earlier, Togo striker Ihlas Bebou struck twice as Hoffenheim also fought back to claim a 3-1 home win against Augsburg to climb to third.
Augsburg took an early lead through a header by Michael Gregoritsch before Bebou converted a pair of crosses to put Hoffenheim ahead, with defender David Raum bagging their third goal in stoppage time.
The win allowed Hoffenheim to leapfrog both Freiburg and Leverkusen, who drew at home to Arminia Bielefeld and Union Berlin respectively.
Freiburg threw away a two-goal lead at home as Bielefeld’s Japan midfielder Masaya Okugawa and substitute forward Bryan Lasme scored second-half goals to earn a 2-2 draw in Germany’s Black Forest.
Lasme’s equaliser three minutes from time was down to a mistake by Freiburg stand-in goalkeeper Benjamin Uphoff on his Bundesliga debut with first choice Mark Flekken sidelined by Covid.
Freiburg had been 2-0 up 20 seconds into the second half when South Korean midfielder Jeong Woo-yeong netted after Janik Haberer gave the hosts an early lead with a long-range
shot.
In Leverkusen, Germany defender Jonathan Tah headed in a late equaliser for the hosts to rescue a 2-2 draw with Union Berlin.
Vendors were enthralled after the Bandarku Ceria (BKC) programme was allowed to resume under the Endemic Phase.
Since its commencement years ago, the weekly BKC has been a source of income for many.
Some were affected after its closure due to the onset of COVID-19 pandemic.
In the Endemic Phase, stall operators had been instructed to set up their stalls at the parking area next to the Royal Regalia Museum.
Long-time vendor Mohd Kashren bin Haji Ahmad is grateful for the programme’s resumption. However, he admitted that the relocation order is difficult to adapt to.
“Before the second wave outbreak, I used to set up my stall at Jalan Roberts as it was convenient for me to load and unload goods, especially if it rains suddenly,” he said.
Mohd Kashren leaves his home in Kampong Bunut after Subuh prayer, and he hoped that the relocation will be able to draw a good crowd.
ABOVE & BELOW: Assistant Municipal Officer Grade II Ahmad Saufi bin Haji Md Yussof; Mohd Kashren bin Haji Ahmad; and Siti Rahmah binti Shahdan speak to the Bulletin. PHOTOS: BAHYIAH BAKIR
Visitors look through items sold at the Bandarku Ceria programme
Siti Rahmah binti Shahdan from Kampong Meragang also echoed the same views on the issue of loading and unloading of goods.
“We have to leave (home) right after the movement restriction order ends at 4am, and drive straight here to give us ample time for unloading and setting up. With only two persons allowed for each stall, we had to work as quickly as possible,” she said.
Siti Rahmah has been participating in the BKC programme for over two years selling grilled food. After learning of the resumption, she made preparations days before Sunday, especially marinating the food and taking swab tests.
“There is not much crowd compared to when we had stalls at Jalan Pretty, but we believe in Allah the Almighty, and Insya Allah we are positive that more will come by. After all, the relocation is just temporary,” she said.
Assistant Municipal Officer Grade II Ahmad Saufi bin Haji Md Yussof said the temporary relocation of stalls is to ensure stall operators and visitors alike adhere to the standard operating procedures set under the Endemic Phase, including scanning the BruHealth QR code and body temperature check.
Stalls are divided into blocks A and B. The Municipal Department will set up block C if public response is encouraging.
BKC programme stall vendors are required to take their swab test with certification two days before the event and must be shown to the officer-in-charge during their registration.
Registrations are conducted weekly to give opportunities for more vendors to participate.
“If stall operators fail to produce the swab result certificate, we will not allow them to participate regardless if they are double vaccinated or not. Only two people are allowed to manage each stall,” the officer said.
THE KOREA HERALD – Hyundai Motor Co said it aims for half of its United States (US) vehicle sales to be environment friendly models by 2030 while planning to produce electric vehicles in the world’s most important automobile market, a company executive has said.
Hyundai Global Chief Operating Officer (COO) Jose Munoz made the comments in an interview with a group of Korean reporters on the sidelines of the Consumer Electronics Show 2022.
The South Korean carmaker is fully prepared to raise the proportion of eco-friendly vehicles in US sales to 40-50 per cent in the next eight years, given it is now equipped with a well-diversified portfolio and product competitiveness, the COO said.
He picked Hyundai’s strengthened SUV lineup, the rapid addition of electrified models to its lineup, and its improved image as a premium carmaker through the Genesis brand as key factors that boosted sales in the US.
In the US market, where demand for SUVs is on the rise, Hyundai sells the Tucson, Santa Fe, and Santa Cruz SUVs, and 65 per cent of its US sales are SUV models, he said.
Demand for its all-electric, plug-in hybrid and gasoline hybrid models has also been on the increase in recent years, rapidly catching up with its bigger rivals, such as BMW, Audi and Lexus, in terms of the pace of growth.
Hyundai Global Chief Operating Officer Jose MunozElectric vehicles plug in at a charging station. PHOTO: THE KOREA HERALD
Zero-emission and less-emitting models account for around 10 per cent of Hyundai’s overall US sales, but the proportion is expected to rise over time.
Hyundai plans to launch EVs with the EV-dedicated IONIQ badge for US consumers this year.
As for the US production of EVs, the executive mentioned both Hyundai’s Alabama plant and Kia’s Georgia plant as production sites for EVs.
Hyundai Motor Group announced last year it will invest SKW8 trillion (USD7.4 billion) in the US by 2025 and the planned investments will cover those in US-based startup Boston Dynamics, urban air mobility, and EV production in the US, Munoz said.
As for the biggest challenges ahead in the US market, he said lack of semiconductor parts and logistics problems will remain major concerns for the automotive industry this year.
Citing Hyundai’s latest achievement in the US, he said Hyundai has beaten Honda Motor Co in terms of brand awareness and is just behind Toyota Motors Corp among Asian carmakers.
In 2021, Hyundai and Kia beat Honda to sell a combined 1.49 million vehicles in the US, and they are widely expected to sell over 1.5 million autos this year, spurred by new models.
This year, Hyundai aims to sell 4.32 million autos globally, 11 per cent higher than its sales of 3.89 million units last year.
CNA/THE NEW YORK TIMES – At my grocery store, the bread selection stretches across an entire aisle. And among those amber waves of bread loaves, bagels and buns are a few gluten-free options, which can cost about twice as much as their wheat-based counterparts. Are they a more nutritious choice?
As is often the case with nutrition questions, the answer will depend on your individual circumstance, said spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and a registered dietitian in Atlanta Jerlyn Jones.
But for most people, choosing a gluten-free bread instead of a wheat-based bread is not an inherently more nutritious option, she added.
And, gluten-free breads can be harder on your wallet, she said, since they are often more expensive and have a shorter shelf life.
Gluten is a protein found in the grains of wheat, barley and rye. In traditional bread made from wheat flour, gluten forms a protein network that makes dough cohesive and stretchy and gives bread that quintessentially satisfying, chewy texture.
But gluten or other components of wheat can cause health problems in some. For the estimated one per cent of people worldwide who have celiac disease, a serious autoimmune condition triggered by eating gluten, the protein causes intestinal damage that can impair nutrient absorption and lead to symptoms like diarrhoea, weight loss, fatigue, anaemia and a blistery, itchy rash. The only effective way to manage celiac disease is strict and lifelong gluten avoidance.
For others with milder wheat-related sensitivities, eating the grain doesn’t cause the intestinal damage found in celiac disease, but can cause gastrointestinal discomfort and symptoms like fatigue and headache that usually go away when wheat is avoided.
It’s not clear how many people have this condition, called non-celiac wheat sensitivity, but it may be more common than celiac disease.
A third, much less common wheat-related condition is a wheat allergy, which can cause allergic reactions like diarrhoea, vomiting, facial swelling or difficulty breathing within minutes to hours after eating wheat.
If you have celiac disease, wheat sensitivity or a wheat allergy, going with a gluten-free bread is clearly the better choice. But in a 2017 survey of 1,000 people in the United States (US) and Canada who purchased gluten-free groceries – conducted by the food and beverage ingredient supplier Ingredion – 46 per cent said they bought those products for reasons other than a medical condition.
Among their top motivations: Wanting to reduce inflammation or consume fewer artificial ingredients, believing that gluten-free products were healthier or more natural, and thinking that such products would help with weight loss.
However, none of these beliefs are true, said registered dietitian and assistant professor of nutritional medicine at the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University Medical Center Anne Lee. “Typically, the gluten-free products are higher in fat, higher in sugar, higher in salt and lower in fibre and your B vitamins and iron,” she said.
Making bread without gluten is a technological challenge, and manufacturers tend to rely on ingredients like refined rice, potato or tapioca flours, which contain much less protein and fibre than wheat flours, Dr Lee said.
The Duchess of Cambridge, who turns 40 yesterday, has emerged as Britain’s reliable royal.
After Prince Harry and Meghan’s stormy departure to California in 2020, and the death of Prince Philip last year, the former Kate Middleton remains in the public eye as the smiling mother of three who can comfort grieving parents at a children’s hospice or wow the nation by playing piano during a televised Christmas concert.
“This is the woman who was the commoner who married into the royal family and who has not tripped up, not caused any embarrassment,’’ said Katie Nicholl, author of Kate: The Future Queen. “It’s not been an easy year, and yet somehow Kate seems to be a bit of a beacon in all of this.’’
At a moment when the House of Windsor is facing more than its share of controversy, Prince William’s spouse has won accolades for her commitment to early education, art and music.
The charities she supports gush about her willingness to get personally involved in their causes.
Olivia Marks-Woldman was touched by the care Kate put into photographing Holocaust survivors Steven Frank and Yvonne Bernstein for an exhibition sponsored by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust. Before the shoot, the duchess spent time learning her subjects’ stories and used the knowledge to compose the photos, said the trust’s CEO Marks-Woldman.
Britain’s Kate, Duchess of Cambridge celebrated her 40th birthday yesterday. PHOTO: AP
“It was a really involved, thoughtful participation,’’ she recalled.” But even after those photographs had been taken, the duchess supported the project and supported Steven and Yvonne and took an interest in them and sent them Christmas cards, invited them to the carol service in Westminster Abbey recently and has just been wonderful.”
Deputy chief executive of East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices Tracy Rennie, has a similar account from the day Kate visited one of the organisation’s facilities in 2019. The duchess agreed to talk with the parents and other relatives of a child who had recently died because they wanted to meet her, even though their pain was still raw.
“It was a really supportive conversation actually, to the point we were having a laugh and a joke together as a family before we left – you wouldn’t imagine that in such a difficult situation,” Rennie said. “They absolutely felt honoured that she’d taken the time out and were overwhelmed by the fact that she was a ‘normal person’ – their words, not mine. They felt she really cared.”
Kate is a royal by choice, not birth.
The daughter of a flight attendant and a flight dispatcher, Catherine Elizabeth Middleton was born in Reading, England, on January 9, 1982, and grew up with a younger sister, Pippa, and a younger brother, James.
The Middletons, from a well-to-do area of Berkshire, west of London, moved to Jordan when Kate was two-years-old because of her father’s work. They returned to England in 1986, and Kate attended the exclusive Marlborough College, where she was active in sports including hockey, tennis and netball.
It was at the University of St Andrews in Scotland that Kate first met Prince William, the elder son of the late Princess Diana and second in line to inherit the British throne after his father, Prince Charles.
First friends and then housemates along with two other students, William and Kate became romantically linked around 2004, when they were pictured together on a skiing trip in Switzerland. Kate graduated in 2005 with a degree in art history and a budding relationship with the prince.
William complained about press intrusion, and Kate’s lawyers asked newspaper editors to leave her alone. Even so, the British media followed every twist in their relationship, including a brief split in 2007. William later acknowledged that the couple’s romance wobbled for several months, saying they were both young and trying to find their way.
The tabloids dubbed her ‘Waity Katie’ for her patience during their courtship. The couple eventually married at Westminster Abbey in 2011. They have three children.
During 11 years under the royal microscope, Kate has largely avoided criticism by adopting the royal maxim “never complain, never explain”.
This was apparent last year when Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, alleged in an interview with Oprah Winfrey that Kate had made her cry during a disagreement over flower girl dresses in the run-up to Meghan and Harry’s 2019 wedding. Kate and the palace responded with silence.
Yet Kate still has the ability to surprise.
For a Christmas Eve carol concert at Westminster Abbey, she sat down at a piano and accompanied Scottish singer Tom Walker on For Those Who Can’t Be Here, a song inspired by loss and separation during the pandemic.
While it wasn’t a secret that Kate had studied the instrument, the pre-recorded performance during a nationally televised concert was something new altogether. Walker said he didn’t know what to expect when the palace suggested the duchess might accompany him in performing the new song at the event.
“It was essentially, for the duchess, a giant gamble,’’ Walker told the AP. “It really is jumping in at the deep end and just hoping you can swim. Because I would have my own reservations about rocking up to a venue to play with somebody else’s band on a song that I hadn’t written and pull it off with absolute grace. It’s not an easy thing, so it must have been quite a challenge.”
Biographer Nicholl, who has watched Kate for years, said the performance offers an insight into Kate’s character, describing her as gutsy and self-assured – a person aware of her strengths.
With Queen Elizabeth II preparing to celebrate 70 years on the throne later this year and the focus squarely on the longevity of the monarchy, Kate’s place as the wife of a future king and the mother of another will loom even larger.
“I think the monarchy is in safe hands,’’ Nicholl said.
LONDON (AFP) – A herd of goats grazing on a London city farm are getting their teeth into hundreds of unwanted Christmas trees donated by residents in a fundraising drive.
The eight goats can’t get enough of the discarded firs, which the Kentish Town City Farm is collecting from outside homes in the area.
Trustee Angela Woods said the project started last year “when one of our staff who’s got a real soft spot for the goats saw a video of goats eating Christmas trees and thought, ‘Ooh, I might try that’”.
The pine needles aren’t just a tasty treat but also a “natural de-wormer”, she explained, as the goats, including the herd’s four-year-old leader Rockie, nibbled on a festive spruce.
In a video posted on Twitter, the goats bowl over a staff member carrying a tree and tear at its needles as she lies in the mud.
They eat everything except the trunk, leaving it looking “like it’s been in a nuclear blast”,
Woods said.
After pioneering the project last year, the farm has widened its drive to 650 trees – the juiciest of which go the goats. The remainder will be turned into woodchips for a nearby park.
The trees are collected by a local van company offering vehicles for free.
Locals have booked collection slots for GBP10, while for GBP15 they also receive a “goat note” of thanks. The drive is set to raise at least GBP8,500.
Some children attach a note back to the goats on their trees, Woods said. For city dwellers without gardens or fireplaces, disposing of Christmas trees, which are traditionally taken down on January 6, is a perennial headache.
The project is a “perfect solution and it’s great for the goats, great for the farm”, Woods said.
Brunei Darussalam e-sport team Buah Gaming roared back to title contention at the Southeast Asian Esports Championship (SEA EC) after finishing the second day in the finals stage of the PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds category in third place last Saturday.
The local representative made an inspired turnaround in one of the country’s finest moments in the e-sport regional scene having previously ended the first day of the final stage in 10th place.
Buah Gaming, which comprises players with the screen names Newbies, Piasau, Bear, Global and Kong, produced successive victories including a flawless run which saw all members avoiding elimination in the Sanhok round.
Unfazed by the top and experienced teams in the region, Buah Gaming took full advantage of having a full squad and obliterated the field with a near-perfect performance culminating in their final elimination of Malaysia e-sport team Geek Fam.
The double victory catapulted the Bruneian team into fourth place in the standings after accumulating 91 points heading into the last match in the second day of the final stage. The e-sport team’s performances earned them the Winner Winner Chicken Dinner’s (WWCD) titles and their fourth overall since their exploits in the group stage.
A screengrab during the PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds e-sport category. PHOTO: PUBG MOBILE MALAYSIA
The in-form Buah Gaming also came close towards securing a third successive match in the final round, eventually won by Vietnam’s Eagle Esport.
Nevertheless, the Bruneians had plenty to cheer about as another solid round lifted them to third place with 102 points, thus knocking Thailand’s The Infinity to fourth place.
The sensational run allowed them an opportunity to vie for the title with leaders Thailand’s Faze Clan and second-placed Malaysia’s Geek Fam viewed as their direct rivals. In the list of top five fraggers, Buah Gaming’s Global was ranked third with 12 eliminations and 1475 damage with his teammate Newbies in fourth with 11 eliminations and 2,086 damage.
Another Brunei Darussalam’s e-sport team Auto Too Soon, who qualified to the finals alongside Buah Gaming, ended the second day in 14th place out of 16 finalists. Meanwhile in the Valorant category, local e-sports team Goodfellas Gaming picked up their first win in the group stage after defeating Laos’ Nine E-sports 2-0 in Group ‘A’. In Group ‘B’, Brunei’s W Key fell to a 2-0 loss to a strong Indonesian e-sport team Onic G.
Brunei e-sport drivers Md Mazdi Mardini and Mohd Norhafiz Razali began their campaign in the SEA E-Sports Championship Eracing GP.
MADRID (AFP) – Karim Benzema passed 300 goals for Real Madrid and Vinicius Junior produced another moment of magic as La Liga’s run-away leaders sailed past Valencia 4-1 on Saturday.
Benzema and Vinicius both scored twice at the Santiago Bernabeu to send Madrid eight points clear of second-placed Sevilla, who have two games in hand, the first coming against Getafe.
Benzema’s 300th goal arrived from the penalty spot before Vinicius bamboozled five Valencia defenders, via a one-two with his French teammate, to add a brilliant second early in the second half.
Vinicius then headed in a third and Benzema added a late fourth, either side of Goncalo Guedes converting a penalty for the hosts.
Benzema now has 17 goals this season and Vinicius 12, their combined 29 more than the entirety of 13 teams in the division, including fourth-placed Real Sociedad.
“I feel very good with Vinicius,” Benzema said. “I’m always here to help him, I know his potential, I think he can reach an even higher level. He is a fantastic player for us.”
Real Madrid’s French forward Karim Benzema. PHOTO: AFP
Benzema’s triple century came after 584 appearances for Real Madrid. He is the fourth player in the club’s history to reach the milestone, joining the esteemed trio of Cristiano Ronaldo, Raul and Alfredo di Stefano.
Barcelona and Real Madrid will face off in the semi-finals of the Spanish Super Cup on Wednesday but the Catalans must look on with envy now at the class Madrid possess in attack.
A lack of punch had earlier cost Barca dear in a 1-1 draw with Granada that saw them miss the chance to move into La Liga’s top four.
Instead they stay sixth, level on points with Atletico Madrid, who are still to face Villarreal.
Real Sociedad sit fourth after they had earlier won 1-0 at home to Celta Vigo.
Luuk de Jong headed Xavi Hernandez’s side into the lead at Los Carmenes, only for Granada’s Antonio Puertas to equalise in the 89th minute, 10 minutes after Barcelona’s 17-year-old Gavi had been sent off.
De Jong nodded in a cross from Dani Alves, the 38-year-old who was making his first La Liga appearance since May 2016.
THE WASHINGTON POST – The best traditional mac and cheese recipes rely on more than just the cheese. They use a bechamel to create a cheese sauce that enrobes the pasta and keeps the dish wonderfully creamy.
It follows, then, that the best vegan mac and cheese recipes rely on more than vegan cheese, too. In fact, plenty of them don’t use any vegan cheese at all, instead enlisting cashews to create the sauce and other powerful ingredients (such as nutritional yeast, miso and mustard) to bring nutty, deep and sharp flavours to the party. Some recipes add tapioca or potato starch to approximate the stretchiness of cheese, vegan or not.
This recipe, which I adapted from the new book by the folks at Goodful (part of BuzzFeed’s Tasty family), brings other nice touches to the standard vegan technique and might just raise the bar.
Here, you cook potato, carrot, garlic and onion in a skillet with water and the requisite cashews, then the whole thing gets pureed with the aforementioned flavour boosters to become the sauce. The potato brings that starchiness, the carrot a hint of colour.
I added a couple of my own touches to the blender. When I first tested this recipe, the only nutritional yeast left in my pantry was one flavoured with “nacho” spices, including cayenne pepper and smoked paprika, and I loved the result. So the next time, I tried adding plain “nooch”, plus the separate spices, and again loved the hint of heat and smokiness.
One warning about this recipe: It makes a lot, filling a deep 12-inch cast-iron skillet. If your household is small, feel free to eat whatever portion you’d like, refrigerate some for the following few lunches and/or freeze some for even longer.
Vegan Broccoli Mac and Cheese. PHOTO: THE WASHINGTON POST
VEGAN BROCCOLI MAC AND CHEESE
Eight to 12 servings
INGREDIENTS
Two tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
One medium white or yellow onion, chopped
One teaspoon fine salt, divided, plus more to taste
Two garlic cloves, grated or pressed
One medium russet potato, scrubbed and cut into half-inch cubes
One medium carrot, scrubbed and cut into quarter-inch coins
One cup raw cashews
Two cups water, plus more as needed
Five tablespoons nutritional yeast
One tablespoon white miso
One tablespoon Dijon mustard
Half teaspoon smoked paprika
Quarter teaspoon cayenne
One large head broccoli
One pound elbow macaroni
3/4 cup panko or unseasoned breadcrumbs
Quarter teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
Position a rack in the centre of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees.
In a 12-inch cast-iron or other ovenproof skillet over medium heat, heat the oil until it shimmers. Add the onion and half teaspoon of the salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, four to five minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Add the potato, carrot, cashews and water, increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, until the potatoes and carrots are very soft, 10 to 15 minutes.
Remove from the heat and let cool for a few minutes.
Carefully pour the vegetables and liquid into a blender. Add the nutritional yeast, miso, mustard, smoked paprika, cayenne and quarter teaspoon of the salt.
Blend on high until the sauce is very smooth, one to two minutes.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. While the water is heating, cut the broccoli stem from the head and use a vegetable peeler to peel the stem’s tough outer layer. Cut the stem in half lengthwise and then into quarter-inch half moons. Cut the head into bite-size florets.
Once the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook until two minutes shy of al dente according to the package directions, three to five minutes.
Add the broccoli and cook for the remaining two minutes, or until the broccoli is bright green and the pasta is al dente.
Drain the pasta and broccoli and return to the pot. Pour in the sauce and stir to fully coat.
Return the mixture to the cast-iron skillet and smooth into an even layer.
In a small bowl, toss the panko with the remaining quarter teaspoon of the salt and the pepper. Sprinkle over the mac and cheese. Bake for 10 to 20 minutes, or until the panko is lightly browned and the sauce starts to bubble. Serve hot.
