Wednesday, October 1, 2008

World's Healthiest Macaroni and Cheese: I started with an Ellie Krieger recipe and then made some tweaks. Here's my recipe:

Ingredients:

1 lb whole wheat pasta

15oz canned pumpkin

2 cups skim milk

6oz reduced fat cheddar cheese, cubed

1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese

1/4 cup parmigiano-reggiano, shredded

1 tsp salt

1tsp mustard

black pepper (to taste)

1 tsp olive oil

2 Tb whole wheat bread crumbs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and coat 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray

Cook pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water until "al dente" or about 8 minutes

In a large saucepan, combine pumpkin and milk until just about simmering

Remove from heat and add 2Tb parmigiano-reggiano, 6oz cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup cottage cheese, salt, pepper, and mustard - combine until sauce is smooth and melted

In a large bowl, combine cheese sauce and pasta

Transfer to the baking pan

In a small bowl, combine olive oil, bread crumbs, and 2Tb parmigiano-reggiano

Sprinkle crumb topping on top of macaroni

Bake for 20 minutes, then broil for 3 minutes (until top is brown and crispy)

Makes 8 servings (about 325 calories, 8.5 grams of fiber, 18 grams of protein per serving)

Whole Foods shopping trip: whole wheat pasta shells, low fat cottage cheese, parmigiano reggiano, canned pumpkin, luna bars, coconut cream pie lara bar, and cranberry-almond-white chocolate cookies. Yum!

My running shoes! Asics Nimbus. 200 miles and counting...