There are many. The biggest of which being that it's delicious to the point where I don't know when or how to stop eating it. And trying to make "healthy" mac and cheese defeats the purpose. It should be indulgent, and comforting, and delicious.
Before I make too many health claims about the recipe that follows, let me just say that I'm a subscriber to the nutritional wisdom that sugar, and not fat, is the problem. Also that home cooked, whole foods are usually better for you than the processed kind, even if it is pumped full of vitamins and Now with 50% less fat! So while this counts as "healthy" to me, you might not feel that it is so.
But I think you'll like it anyway...
Pumpkin mac and cheese:
Ingredients:
1/2 box of pasta (the picture shows the brand I like because it's high-protein and fiber, but I used penne)
15 oz of canned pumpkin
1/2 sweet onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1 bunch of kale, chard or other dark green, stems removed and chopped
2 cups shredded cheese (I used Dubliner, more on that later)
1 cup half and half or whole milk
1 tablespoon apples cider vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
4 tablespoons of butter separated
spices:
nutmeg
salt and pepper
thyme
cloves
ginger
I've stopped slicing my mushrooms. I quarter them now, because I like bigger chunks of mushroom in things. Is that weird? Anyway, before you chop all your veggies, set up your pans. You'll need a big pot for the pasta, which you should prepare with water, olive oil and salt. Do you know how much salt you need to add to the water you cook your pasta in? More than that. not a pinch, not a teaspoon, but more. You want your water salted until it tastes salty. It will make your pasta taste better, trust me.
You'll also need a sauce pan and a skillet. In the saucepan, melt a tablespoon of butter and leave it on low. You want that butter to do more than melt, you want it to just start to brown. So leave it be while you chop things. Pre-heat your oven to 350.
Toss another tablespoon of butter into the skillet and start the garlic, onion and mushroom with salt, pepper and thyme. I added some red chili flakes as well, because I think they go well in everything. Once the butter in your saucepan is starting to brown, add the canned pumpkin.
RULE NUMBER ONE ABOUT CANNED PUMPKIN IS YOU MUST COOK IT BEFORE USING IT. This goes for anything you want it in but especially baked goods. This will taste like the can in comes in, unless you give it some gentle heat to bring out the pumpkin flavor, infuse it with spices and begin to caramelize the natural sugars. Stir the pumpkin into the melted butter, adding nutmeg, ginger and just a dash of cloves. Then add more nutmeg. Nutmeg is the star of this dish, which is why you want to go easy on the cloves, as they can be overpowering. Add some salt and pepper and then more nutmeg. I'm serious. Every step of this dish you should taste the pumpkin and if it doesn't scream nutmeg you haven't added enough.
Once the mushrooms are starting to get soft, add the kale (or chard, or spinach. If you want to eat this all right away I guess spinach would be fine but if you want to have leftovers DO NOT use spinach unless you know the magic trick that will make it not taste like death when reheated. And then please email me that secret.) Sprinkle the greens with salt and then drizzle with olive oil, apple cider vinegar and lemon juice. Stir and keep an eye on this as it cooks, you don't want the greens overdone and they will cook more in the oven, so err on the side of undercooking them.
Add the milk or half and half to the pumpkin and (you guessed it) more nutmeg. Boil your pasta water and cook according to instructions (if you don't want to make yourself crazy trying to multi-task without Dr. Rubrub to stir things because she's taken her manfriend to Portland and left you all alone with Spider and Boogie and CATS WHO WANT TO EAT YOU, than you can do this step well ahead and just have your cooked pasta ready. Sadly, I did not. Anyway, be sure and reserve about a quarter-cup of the cooking water if you do.)
Your greens are done! Take them off the heat!! Now, don't be like me and realize at this moment that you haven't shredded your cheese. Do that in advance. Now. Any cheese you like will work in this recipe. If it's a soft, mild cheese like mozzarella, you might not taste it very much. If it's super hard and strong like Parmigiano-Reggiano, you might go a bit easy so it doesn't get crazy. Something in the middle (Cheddar, especially aged white, gouda, havarti, beecher's flagship, etc) will probably suit your purposes the best. Melt about a cup of the cheese into the sauce, adding it in small handfuls and stirring well between each. If your sauce gets too thick, add a bit more milk.
When the pasta is done (and you want it VERY al dente, as it will continue to soften in the oven,) drain, but reserve about 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Why? Because this will make you a cooking ninja. Add that water (with the salt, olive oil and startchy goodness) into your sauce. It will help everything get along a little better.
Stir that in. Return the drained pasta to the empty pot and melt another tablespoon of butter into the noodles. Pour over the pumpkin sauce, and mix well. Find a round casserole dish or a very deep 9-inch pie plate.
Layer the dish. Pasta, mushrooms and greens, 1/2 cup of shredded cheese, the rest of the mushrooms, the rest of the pasta, then the rest of the cheese. If you're a bread crumb lover, top with bread crumbs (or crushed rosemary triscuits if you want to roll like me,) and the final tablespoon of melted butter. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and Spider gets home and you can't wait even a second more to eat it.
It may not exactly be health food, but it has a lot more good-for-you bits than the standard version. If you want it richer, up the cheese and omit the greens (fool. Kale is DELICIOUS.) If you want to make it even lighter, use lowfat milk, up the pumpkin and decrease the cheese. You can also play with the ratio of pasta to vegetables.
Before I make too many health claims about the recipe that follows, let me just say that I'm a subscriber to the nutritional wisdom that sugar, and not fat, is the problem. Also that home cooked, whole foods are usually better for you than the processed kind, even if it is pumped full of vitamins and Now with 50% less fat! So while this counts as "healthy" to me, you might not feel that it is so.
Pumpkin mac and cheese:
Ingredients:
1/2 box of pasta (the picture shows the brand I like because it's high-protein and fiber, but I used penne)
15 oz of canned pumpkin
1/2 sweet onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1 bunch of kale, chard or other dark green, stems removed and chopped
2 cups shredded cheese (I used Dubliner, more on that later)
1 cup half and half or whole milk
1 tablespoon apples cider vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
4 tablespoons of butter separated
spices:
nutmeg
salt and pepper
thyme
cloves
ginger
I've stopped slicing my mushrooms. I quarter them now, because I like bigger chunks of mushroom in things. Is that weird? Anyway, before you chop all your veggies, set up your pans. You'll need a big pot for the pasta, which you should prepare with water, olive oil and salt. Do you know how much salt you need to add to the water you cook your pasta in? More than that. not a pinch, not a teaspoon, but more. You want your water salted until it tastes salty. It will make your pasta taste better, trust me.
You'll also need a sauce pan and a skillet. In the saucepan, melt a tablespoon of butter and leave it on low. You want that butter to do more than melt, you want it to just start to brown. So leave it be while you chop things. Pre-heat your oven to 350.
Toss another tablespoon of butter into the skillet and start the garlic, onion and mushroom with salt, pepper and thyme. I added some red chili flakes as well, because I think they go well in everything. Once the butter in your saucepan is starting to brown, add the canned pumpkin.
RULE NUMBER ONE ABOUT CANNED PUMPKIN IS YOU MUST COOK IT BEFORE USING IT. This goes for anything you want it in but especially baked goods. This will taste like the can in comes in, unless you give it some gentle heat to bring out the pumpkin flavor, infuse it with spices and begin to caramelize the natural sugars. Stir the pumpkin into the melted butter, adding nutmeg, ginger and just a dash of cloves. Then add more nutmeg. Nutmeg is the star of this dish, which is why you want to go easy on the cloves, as they can be overpowering. Add some salt and pepper and then more nutmeg. I'm serious. Every step of this dish you should taste the pumpkin and if it doesn't scream nutmeg you haven't added enough.
Once the mushrooms are starting to get soft, add the kale (or chard, or spinach. If you want to eat this all right away I guess spinach would be fine but if you want to have leftovers DO NOT use spinach unless you know the magic trick that will make it not taste like death when reheated. And then please email me that secret.) Sprinkle the greens with salt and then drizzle with olive oil, apple cider vinegar and lemon juice. Stir and keep an eye on this as it cooks, you don't want the greens overdone and they will cook more in the oven, so err on the side of undercooking them.
Add the milk or half and half to the pumpkin and (you guessed it) more nutmeg. Boil your pasta water and cook according to instructions (if you don't want to make yourself crazy trying to multi-task without Dr. Rubrub to stir things because she's taken her manfriend to Portland and left you all alone with Spider and Boogie and CATS WHO WANT TO EAT YOU, than you can do this step well ahead and just have your cooked pasta ready. Sadly, I did not. Anyway, be sure and reserve about a quarter-cup of the cooking water if you do.)
Your greens are done! Take them off the heat!! Now, don't be like me and realize at this moment that you haven't shredded your cheese. Do that in advance. Now. Any cheese you like will work in this recipe. If it's a soft, mild cheese like mozzarella, you might not taste it very much. If it's super hard and strong like Parmigiano-Reggiano, you might go a bit easy so it doesn't get crazy. Something in the middle (Cheddar, especially aged white, gouda, havarti, beecher's flagship, etc) will probably suit your purposes the best. Melt about a cup of the cheese into the sauce, adding it in small handfuls and stirring well between each. If your sauce gets too thick, add a bit more milk.
When the pasta is done (and you want it VERY al dente, as it will continue to soften in the oven,) drain, but reserve about 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Why? Because this will make you a cooking ninja. Add that water (with the salt, olive oil and startchy goodness) into your sauce. It will help everything get along a little better.
Stir that in. Return the drained pasta to the empty pot and melt another tablespoon of butter into the noodles. Pour over the pumpkin sauce, and mix well. Find a round casserole dish or a very deep 9-inch pie plate.
Layer the dish. Pasta, mushrooms and greens, 1/2 cup of shredded cheese, the rest of the mushrooms, the rest of the pasta, then the rest of the cheese. If you're a bread crumb lover, top with bread crumbs (or crushed rosemary triscuits if you want to roll like me,) and the final tablespoon of melted butter. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and Spider gets home and you can't wait even a second more to eat it.
It may not exactly be health food, but it has a lot more good-for-you bits than the standard version. If you want it richer, up the cheese and omit the greens (fool. Kale is DELICIOUS.) If you want to make it even lighter, use lowfat milk, up the pumpkin and decrease the cheese. You can also play with the ratio of pasta to vegetables.
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