Is There A Healthier Version of a Mac and Cheese Out There Somewhere?
Though there is a multitude of ways to make any Mac and Cheese healthier nowadays, by substituting or switching out a few of the ingredients to organic for one, modifying the type of milk and/or cheese, etcetera, I wanted to share my own “Sweet Cauli and Cheese” recipe and yes you guessed it—I have replaced the pasta with this nutritional veggie.
A New Veggie Star Is Born
Cauliflower has not been particularly popular in the past, but has since reported to the front of the vegetable classroom, as a new star is born. See within recent years this little cruciferous vegetable—with its lumpy head and all—has definitely become all of the rage, at least for the health conscious anyway, and now you can find cauliflower substituted and incorporated in recipes in a number of ways.
For instance, in pizza it can substituted as the crust; in the place of rice as yet another healthier and low calorie alternative, and the list goes on and on. However, just keep in mind, this bland yet healthy vegetable will require a little sprucing up a bit in order to appeal to the tastebuds. Furthermore, this recipe of mine gives cauliflower a sweet and delicious flavor, and is only but one example of how I play off of Mac and Cheese, to make it a tad healthier and without compromising the taste either.
Sweet Cauli and Cheese
This is a healthier play off of the traditional Mac and Cheese by using cauliflower in place of pasta.
Ingredients
- 1 head Cauliflower organic
- 3 tbsp Butter salted, organic
- 2 tbsp Flour unbleached, all purpose
- 3 Garlic Cloves minced
- 1/2 cup White Onions chopped
- 1-1/2 cup Coconut Milk organic
- 1-1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese, yellow or white organic, grated
- 1 cup Italian Breadcrumbs
Instructions
-
Par boil or roast cauliflower until just slightly tender. Note: If parboiling, be sure to pat dry.
-
Separate the cooled cauliflower into floret pieces. Salt and pepper the spears and set aside.
-
Meanwhile, add butter to sauce pan and saute the chopped onions until just barely tender. Season the onions with salt and pepper. Then add the minced garlic and flour an cook for an additional minute or two.
-
Add the coconut milk and whisk continuously until thickened. Then add the cauliflower and allow to cook for an additional minutes. Add more salt and pepper to taste, if needed.
-
Turn off the heat and stir in the cups of cheese. Pour the mixture into a buttered baking dish. Top with breadcrumbs and dot with butter.
-
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, with the last 5 minutes on broil in order to lightly brown the top crust.
Recipe Notes
In this particular recipe, I used coconut milk which gave it a slightly sweeter taste. However, if you prefer to keep it similar to traditional Macaroni and Cheese, use whole or low fat milk instead.
As always and whenever possible, I encourage using primarily "organic" ingredients in your recipes.
