a healthier mac and cheese : by amy

Logan is starting commercial daycare in a few weeks.  I'm not too cray-cray about their meal plan option, so I'm thinking of packing his lunch for his 3 days/week at daycare.  But...what to pack for my picky toddler who can't quite feed himself properly with utencils just yet?  He likes to eat bread, cheese, yogurt, broccoli/carrots/peas, all fruits (except cherries) and rice/soup.  He doesn't do many pastas, quesadillas or meat very well.  So I recently started thinking about portable, well-balanced lunch options for him that can be microwavable.  It also stinks that he doesn't eat pasta too well since pasta is just so easy to make.  His current care provider says he does eat mac and cheese.  I rarely make mac and cheese because it's so rich and heavy due to the butter-laden roux.  Actually, I made it once, and neither Logan nor my husband ate it (husband was training for a bike race at the time), so I was forced to eat the entire thing.  It didn't do my waistline and chins any good.

Anyway, since mac and cheese (or elbow pasta) seemed to be the only pasta that Logan would eat for the time being, I wanted to try to make an elbow pasta dish that Logan could eat at daycare-- preferably one that's somewhat healthy.  After doing some research, I found a way of making the cheese sauce a little more heart-healthy.  Other than the altered roux, this is an original recipe by yours truly!  You can eat it right after mixing the pasta up in the cheese sauce, or if you prefer a little more texture, you can bake it with some extra cheese and panko sprinkled on top.  The latter will result in a less-saucy mac and cheese but will have a great, crispy top texture.  See below for my recipe!

 



Amy's Healthier Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

- 1 box/pound of elbow pasta

- 2-3 cups of shredded cheese (I used a Kraft/Philadelphia Cream Cheese blend b/c it looked interesting.  You can use freshly shredded or whatever cheese your heart desires)

- 1 grated zucchini

- 1 diced onion

- 1 package of baby spinach, roughly chopped

- 1.5 cups of whole milk, divided (1 cup / 0.5 cup)

- 2 tablespoons of all purpose flour

- salt and pepper to taste (I never measure this!)

- panko breadcrumbs

Directions:

(preheat your oven to 350 degrees if you plan on baking)

- Boil the pasta: If you choose to bake this, you want to undercook it by a 2-3 minutes since it will continue baking in the oven.   If you don't plan on baking this, boil according to the box's instructions-- don't forget to season your pasta!  Drain and set aside.

- Cook the veggies:  Saute the grated zucchini and diced onions in a pan with some olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  Once the onions are softened, add in the package of chopped baby spinach.  Gently fold the sauteed veggies over the spinach to help wilt it and cook it down.  Once the spinach is cooked, set the pan aside.

- Make the cheese sauce: Warm 1 cup of milk in a pot over low-medium heat (do not let it boil!).  In the meantime, in a separate bowl/cup, mix the flour with the remaining 0.5 cup of milk.  Whisk to make a smooth paste.  Once the warmed milk is steaming, pour the paste mixure into the pot and turn the heat to low.  Continue whisking the mixture for 3-4 minutes until the roux becomes smooth and thick (do the back-of-the-spoon test).  Once thickened, add your shredded cheese (if baking, use 2.5 cups and save the remainder for the topping).  Keep stirring to make a smooth cheesey sauce and then take the pot off the heat.  Season with salt and pepper to your liking. 

- Combine and eat/bake!: Mix your sauteed veggies into the cheese sauce.  Then pour all of your elbow pasta into the cheese sauce and carefully combine.  You can serve it just like this.  Or, you can pour your mac and cheese into a baking dish, top it with leftover cheese, panko and a light drizzle of olive oil, and pop it into a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. 

P.S.: Logan's daycare lunch menu will likely consist of a variation of the following:

- steamed dumplings / steamed veggies / fruit

- kimbap (Korean rice rolls) / fruit

- umma's healthier mac n' cheese / fruit

- rice/soup / steamed veggies / fruit

- cut up ravioli (or any stuffed pasta with ricotta cheese) / steamed veggies / fruit