The epitome of comfort food, mac and cheese is pretty significant. Although I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you that.
Even though I rolled with the occasional box of Annie’s White Cheddar Shells back in college, boxed macaroni and cheese has never been my thing. If I was going to have mac, I was going to have the good stuff. Fresh out of the oven, covered in real cheese…yep. I could get with that.
I have a long history of making mac and cheese. Back in my far less healthy teenage days, my mom asked me to help her make a batch of mac and cheese for an upcoming church function. I borrowed a recipe from a family friend, put my own spin on it, and it was pretty delightful. No joke – at church everyone loved it, and from there on out it was requested at every family function/holiday/special Sunday dinner thereafter. The only issue…it was pretty horrible nutrition-wise
My 16 year old self definitely didn’t know/care much about nutrition. 3/4 cup of butter? Sure! 5 cups of cheese? Sounds good! Scary orange processed cheese-like product? You bet! Thankfully my now 25 year old self is not only more health-conscious and educated, but I’m also a much better cook. After some trial and error, I finally perfected a mac and cheese recipe that rivals my old version – but is much healthier.
I started by swapping the old school white pasta for whole grain (I like quinoa pasta, but whole wheat or brown rice will also work). Then, I cut the butter back. Way back. Having almost one whole cup of butter is completely excessive for one dish. Finally, instead of obscene amounts of real and fake cheese, I used a combo of quality sharp cheddar and butternut squash puree. This helped me cut way down on the fat and calories, eliminated the processed junk, and even sneak in a veggie without sacrificing texture or flavor.
So the next time you’re in the mood for the good stuff, give this a try! It can easily be made gluten free as well if that’s your thang.
I hope you all love this as much as I do. Even boyfriend (who is very picky, and quite opinionated when it comes to food) loved it. Let me know if you give it a try!
What are your favorite comfort foods?
What classics would you like to see made healthier?
xo,
Les
Wow this looks amazing… nothing better than pasta and cheese! Altho I am still having a little trouble with the word “healthy”..don’t really see how that’s healthy
Thanks Claudia! Maybe not the epitome of health, but definitely healthier than many versions that have far more butter and processed cheese
Just made this for a Super Bowl party and everyone absolutely loved it! I’m not a huge butternut squash fan but I know it’s so chock full of antioxidants and good for you vitamins. You can barely taste the squash and no one realized it wasn’t just a traditional mac and cheese recipe or that it was made with a squash based sauce. It tastes so rich and creamy that this will for sure be my go to mac and cheese recipe!
Yay – this just made my day! So glad you loved it