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Baked Mac and Cheese

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I love this recipe! This baked mac and cheese is healthy, high in dietary fibre, easy to make and comfort food at its best. This dinner recipe is perfect for a chilly evening in with your family. It’s also great the next day to take to work – that is if there’s anything left!

 

I’ve been making this recipe for several years and I’ve refined it and changed it over time. It’s based on Skinnytaste’s recipe for Skinny Baked Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Kid friendly recipe for healthy macaroni and cheese! I delicious and nutritious meal that not only picky eaters will love but you will too!

Ingredients to make Baked Mac and Cheese

2 1/2 cups of 100% whole grain short pasta (I used rotini)
4 cups of broccoli or cauliflower (or a mixture of both)
2 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup of whole wheat flour
2 cups of skim milk
2 cups of reduced fat cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Herbes de Provence to taste
4 tablespoons of parmesan cheese

What you need to make Baked Mac and Cheese

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Instructions to make Baked Mac and Cheese

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees and lightly spray a casserole dish  with olive oil spray. I use an oval-shaped casserole dish and it seems to work well.

Bring lightly salted water to a boil.

Once the water has boiled, cook the pasta per the instructions on the box and add in the broccoli/cauliflower so it gets cooked as well.

 

After the pasta is cooked al dente (still a bit firm), drain the pasta and the broccoli/cauliflower and set them aside. Once the pasta and veggies cool down, chop the cooked veggies into bite sized pieces.

 

Using the same pot you used to cook the pasta (to make clean up easier and faster), melt the butter on low heat (so as not to burn the butter or the pot).

 

When the butter has melted, add the whole wheat flour and mix until fully combined.

 

Then add in the skim milk, season lightly with salt and pepper and add in the Herbes de Provence to taste.

 

Bring the milk mixture to a boil and let simmer for around 5 minutes, mixing with a wooden spoon several times. When the milk mixture has thickened a bit, take it off the heat. Then add in the two cups of cheddar cheese. Stir the cheese in the milk mixture until fully melted.

 

Once the cheese has melted, add in the pasta and broccoli/cauliflower. Combine the pasta, veggies and cheese mixture until fully covered.

 

Place the pasta, veggie and cheese mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Flatten out the top a bit to make sure that the pasta is evenly spread out. Then top the pasta mixture with the grated parmesan cheese (if you happen to add more than 4 tablespoons don’t worry – I won’t tell anyone…)

 

Bake the casserole uncovered for 20 minutes.

baked mac and cheese

Who doesn't love warm and yummy #mac&cheese! Click To Tweet

If you think this dish looks yummy (which it totally is), you should also take a look at my Pesto Pasta with Roast Tomatoes!

PMP

This healthy macaroni and cheese is perfect for a weeknight meal! Enjoy the extra veggies and fiber from the whole wheat pasta, broccoli and cauliflower.

Comments

  3. Thank you so much for linking at #overthemoon! I look forward to seeing what you share every week. Please come back for #WonderfulWednesday or #ThursdayFavoriteThings. Don’t forget to comment your link #’s so I can be sure to visit and you get a chance to be featured! Pinned and shared.

    Reply

  6. Oh this looks yummy!! I love the addition of the vegetables!! Can’t beat a great Mac & Cheese recipe!! Thanks for sharing on My 2 Favorite Things on Thursday! Hope to see you again tomorrow!! Pinned!

    Reply

  9. It looks fantastic and I’d love to try it with broccoli (we looooooove broccoli)
    With some green salad and it’s the perfect dinner for us 🙂

    Reply

  16. I do love mac and cheese, its proper comfort food. I haven’t tried it your way with veggies before, but it looks good. I have tried it with chopped bacon in it, and that is yummy. I have to use gluten free pasta and flour though, but it is still delicious.
    Your photos look great too.
    Amanda. #kcacols

    Reply

  17. This looks yummy!! Quick and easy to make even for terrible cookers than me!! LOL Thanks so much for sharing this recipe at #KCACOLS. I love having you here and it would lovely to see you again on Sunday!! 🙂 xx

    Reply

  23. Yum! I love using whole wheat pasta and flour where I can. We all enjoy mac and cheese and broccoli and cauliflower are a great addition! Thanks for sharing at Throwback Thursday.

    Reply

  24. We definitely have similar tastes as I just made this last week! I am really loving how simple the recipes are from Skinnytaste.com and also how you’ve modified it by adding caulifower.

    Reply

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