Healthy Mac and Cheese
Creating a truly healthy mac and cheese recipe that actually tastes good is easier said than done. But it can be done I've played around a lot with trying to make a healthy mac and cheese and this one is by far the best as far as good taste and good nutrition.
Creating a truly healthy mac and cheese recipe that actually tastes good is easier said than done. But it can be done I've played around a lot with trying to make a healthy mac and cheese and this one is by far the best as far as good taste and good nutrition.
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 cup butternut squash roasted
- 1 cup raw cashew opt: to enhance nutrition, soak cashews for 2 hours in water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice fresh
- 1 tablespoon truffle oil (or extra virgin olive oil)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (sea salt)
- 1/4 cup yeast nutritional
- 1/4 pinch cayenne pepper
- 6 cups whole wheat elbow macaroni cooked
- 1/2 cup chedder cheese shredded (and i prefer organic)
- Carbohydrate 28.107441250351 g
- Cholesterol 4.94375 mg
- Fat 10.4839679166667 g
- Fiber 3.4931833075696 g
- Protein 9.47288041668212 g
- Saturated Fat 2.574237 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (124g)
- Sodium 35.9672916667073 mg
- Sugar 24.6142579427814 g
- Trans Fat 1.07235833333333 g
- Calories 228 calories
Step-by-step
- Roast butternut squash: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place butternut squash on a baking sheet, skin sides down. Rub the flesh with extra virgin olive oil and season with salt to taste. Roast butternut squash for about 35-40 minutes, or until flesh is fork-tender. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. When cool enough to handle, scoop out 1 cup of pulp and set aside (reserve leftover roasted squash for another dish or eat as-is.)
- Place cooled roasted butternut squash, cashews, lemon juice, water, truffle oil, salt, nutritional yeast, cayenne pepper, and paprika in a high speed blender. Process until smooth and creamy.
- Place the cooked macaroni in a large heavy saucepan. Stir in the butternut squash cashew cheese sauce and heat over medium high. When pasta is hot, add the cheese and stir until well combined. Serve warm.
- In a small bowl, mix together the extra virgin olive oil, wheat germ and shredded cheese.
- Transfer mac and cheese to an oven-proof casserole. Sprinkle topping on top. Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
Building Emulsions Without Roux
Traditional cheese sauces rely on starch and fat emulsions built with a hot roux, but this method bypasses dairy heaviness by exploiting the natural starches in roasted butternut squash. Roasting at 400 degrees Fahrenheit caramelizes surface sugars while drawing out internal moisture, concentrating the vegetable's natural thickening agents. When blended with soaked raw cashews, these starches intertwine with released plant fats to form a stable colloidal suspension that mimics heavy cream.
Optimizing Cashew Hydration
Raw cashews require adequate water absorption to break down completely in a high-speed blender without leaving a gritty residue. Soaking the nuts in water for two hours softens the rigid cellular walls, allowing the rotating blades to shear the proteins and lipids into microscopic particles. Skipping this hydration step leaves dense granules that disrupt the smooth mouthfeel characteristic of proper pasta sauces.
Adjusting Fats and Acids
Nutritional yeast provides savory depth through concentrated glutamates, while fresh lemon juice introduces low pH levels that slightly curdle plant proteins, heightening the perception of sharp cheddar. Swapping truffle oil for extra virgin olive oil alters the volatile aromatic compounds significantly, trading an earthy, sulfurous profile for herbaceous bitterness. Maintaining precise moisture ratios prevents the purée from becoming too thick to coat the whole wheat macaroni evenly.
