Sneaky Squash Mac And Cheese Recipes

SNEAKY MAC 'N CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350. Coat shallow 2-quart baking dish with cooking spray. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain well; reserve.
• Meanwhile, whisk dry milk powder into low-fat milk until smooth. In large pot, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour; cook, whisking constantly, until starting to brown, 2 minutes. Whisk in milk mixture until blended; cook, stirring, until thickened, 2 minutes. Stir in squash until smooth and blended. Stir in cheese, worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper until melted and smooth. Remove from heat.
• Stir pasta into cheese sauce; transfer to baking dish. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter; stir in crackers and dried thyme. Sprinkle over pasta mixture. Bake until bubbly and golden brown, about 15 minutes. If desired, garnish with thyme sprigs.

SNEAKY (HEALTHY) MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• •Put cauliflower florets in microwave safe dish and cook covered for 10 minutes, or until tender.
• •In a large pot, bring pasta water to a boil.
• •Add pasta, and cook until al dente, I recommend 2 minutes less than the package says.
• •Drain and add back to the pot, off the heat.
• •In another, small pot, boil milk and pasta water (scoop it out of the boiling pasta pot) with the butternut squash.
• •Add the butternut squash and milk mix into a blender with the cheeses.
• •Add the cauliflower.
• •Blend until smooth.
• •Taste, you will probably need to add a decent amount of salt.
• •Add the sauce to the pasta and place in a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish.
• •Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed (yes again - this is your last chance to get it perfect!).
• Melt butter and mix with bread crumbs.
• Sprinkle bread crumbs over mac n cheese.
• Cook at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, or until breadcrumbs are golden.
• Can be made ahead and refridgerated. Just cook 30 minutes.
• •Eat up! (And don't tell!).

BUTTERNUT SQUASH MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Place butternut squash, cut-side down, on a baking sheet.
• Roast squash in the preheated oven until soft, 40 to 50 minutes. Remove squash flesh from skin and set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil; cook the rotini at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes; drain.
• Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk flour and mustard into melted butter until smooth, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk milk into flour mixture until the mixture has the texture of heavy cream, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Stir butternut squash, white Cheddar cheese, and Cheddar cheese into milk mixture until cheese is melted. Stir rotini into cheese mixture. Pour cheese mixture into a 9x13-inch baking dish. Top with bread crumbs.
• Bake in the preheated oven until bread crumbs are golden, about 10 minutes.