Mac and cheese!

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Roll_Tide_Meg
Roll_Tide_Meg Posts: 255 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So this may be a long shot but does anyone know a clean eating version of mac and cheese? It is my favorite and it is the only thing I am REALLY missing in my new lifestyle.I don't mind cooking it myself or anything like that just need a recipe and need to know that it is better for me than the country crock mac and cheese we used to buy. Thanks for the help in advance! :)

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  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
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    Bumping for ideas since I have no homemade mac and cheese recipes and would love to have one...provided it has real cheese and pasta in it. :bigsmile:
  • dynamitegalxo
    dynamitegalxo Posts: 299 Member
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    if you're willing to try something a little bit out of the box, i will humbly suggest the following: quinoa mac and cheese. seriously, try it.

    http://www.salmonatseven.com/2012/07/11/quinoa-mac-and-cheese/
  • Roll_Tide_Meg
    Roll_Tide_Meg Posts: 255 Member
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    I'll take a look! :)
  • Beavergong
    Beavergong Posts: 178 Member
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    For 145 calories I make 1/2 cup whole meal pasta and cook for 6 minutes with 1 cup of water. I add 1/2 cup of spinach from the garden for the last minute . I drain this and put in a bowl with fresh cracked pepper and 20g mozzarella grated cheese and zap in the microwave for. 30 seconds.
    See what you think
  • Roll_Tide_Meg
    Roll_Tide_Meg Posts: 255 Member
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    Yum! Now that sounds good! I am going to try that!
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,452 Member
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    You can make it with a cornflour sauce instead of a roux. Instead of starting with flour and butter, you heat most of the milk in the pan. Mix a bit of the milk with the cornflour, then stir it in when the milk is close to boiling (stir quite quickly and get to all corners of the pan so that it doesn't go lumpy). Add grated cheese - I would use strong, mature cheddar, because you don't have to use so much to get the flavour, and seasoning helps to add flavour too, e.g. salt, pepper, mustard, paprika. Mix with hot cooked macaroni.

    Here's an example of a cornflour sauce recipe http://www.skinnyblog.co.uk/2010/08/cheese-sauce-made-with-cornflour-and-has-no-butter/ . I believe cornflour can also be called cornstarch.

    You can also use a low fat soft/spreading cheese like Philadelphia. Mix/melt that with the hot pasta in the pan, and add a little grated cheddar and seasoning for flavour (and a little milk if it's too thick). It's nice, but to me, it doesn't taste as traditional as the cornflour sauce technique.

    I also like to bulk out macaroni cheese with green veg. I think it improves the look and taste. Broccoli and peas are particularly good.

    Edit: I misread and didn't realise you were looking for a clean eating version. I don't know if you are able to eat cornflour or flour! If you can't use flour/thickeners you can make a lovely, but high fat, pasta sauce by getting a good quality strong-tasting cheese (e.g. pecorino, etc.) and melting it in double cream (yes, cream) and mixing that with cooked pasta, salt and pepper, and top with some fresh chopped herbs - chervil is nice, or chives or parsley. This is DELICIOUS! But obviously not low-cal! Or you could thin down cream cheese with milk and use that.
  • notworthstalking
    notworthstalking Posts: 531 Member
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    I tend to have a smaller serve, one that fits in and make sure I have it with veggies . My daughters need the calories.
  • Tme2change
    Tme2change Posts: 185 Member
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    http://www.cleaneatingmag.com/Search-Results.aspx?recipeQuery=macaroni and cheese
    this is where I get most of my recipes from then I tweak from there :-)
  • Ragingwitch
    Ragingwitch Posts: 28
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    I don't know about clean eating but you can start your roux off with olive oil instead of butter (it looks wrong at first but it will thicken) and then I usually make my sauce with soya milk, as I can't have cows' milk. Lower fat.
  • bnorris2013
    bnorris2013 Posts: 256 Member
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    You know you can still eat your mac and enjoy it just the way you like to prepare it just eat it in moderation
    Assuming you make it fresh and bake it so instead of making a big ol pan of it make a smaller pan of it and enjoy it over a few days and heck if its because you like to eat more of it just add some good cardio like eliptical or zumba for the day to earn extra calories so you can enjoy as much as you want - if your gonna eat 800 calories in mac earn an extra 800 calories in exercise
  • shaupt87
    shaupt87 Posts: 5 Member
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    Not sure on clean eating - but if you are looking for a lower cal/fat version, Trader Joe's has a "reduced guilt" version in their frozen section... and it is DELICIOUS!

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