Butternut Squash Macaroni + Cheese

A few months ago, my good friend Kristen helped me put together a recipe binder of all my magazine-tear outs. She's so creative and organized like that and now I'm organized too :) While we went through my pages of Food Network Mag and Real Simple recipes, she proclaimed her love for Cooking Light.

Since she was so over the moon about it, I decided that I too had to get on the bandwagon. Luckily, that cute husband of mine gave me a subscription for my birthday. He’s a keeper.

 

The second issue I received featured a macaroni & cheese that is lightened up by using butternut squash instead of flour for making a thickening agent (a roux). It's so genius because a) it works, b) it's a sneaky way to add some veggies, and c) the results are healthy and delicious.

I love this dish because it’s simple, comforting and relatively guilt-free. I’m not going to lie to you and say it’s as good as a full fat macaroni and cheese (for that, check out my gruyere mac & cheese and my asiago fig mac & cheese). It’s just not. But this recipe is perfect for a lightened up weeknight dinner and makes a large tray to boot. It’s a great way to enjoy a classic without breaking the caloric bank! I made a few changes from the original recipe to suit our needs and what we had on hand, but the result was still fantastico. So thanks to Kristen for giving me magazine envy.

Butternut Squash Macaroni & Cheese
*Adapted from Cooking Light
1 lb. elbow pasta (I used Barilla Plus), cooked according to package directions, boiled 1 less minute
1 medium butternut squash, diced
1 ½ C fat free milk
1 ¼ C low sodium chicken broth
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp fat free Greek yogurt (I used Fage 0%)
1 ¼ C extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
½ C + 1 tbsp parmigiano reggiano, grated, divided
½ C panko bread crumbs (I used the seasoned kind)
kosher salt
black pepper
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large saucepan, bring the chicken broth, milk, butternut squash and garlic to a light boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 25 minutes until the squash is fork tender and your kitchen smells like a bit of braised heaven :) I should note that I took this time to make the pasta and grate my cheese. Please note that I boiled the pasta to al dente because it is still going to cook in the oven - I didn’t want to overcook it!

Once soft, blend the squash mixture and the Greek yogurt together. You can use a blender, but I used my handy immersion blender (carefully) in the saucepan. Seriously, if you don’t have one...get one! It’s one of the best tools I’ve ever purchased and use it all the time. I think mine was $25 at Bed Bath & Beyond with a coupon. It’s perfect for all smoothies, soups and rogue uses like this.

Once completely blended, whisk in the cheddar and ½ C parmigiano reggiano until melted. In a large bowl, mix together the elbows and the cheese mixture. Pour into a large casserole dish that has been coated with cooking spray. Smooth the top and sprinkle the panko and remaining parmigiano reggiano over the top. Spritz lightly with cooking spray and bake for 20 minutes. Serve immediately. We also found that it reheated fabulously in the microwave (so as not to dry it out in the oven on day 2+).

So there you go. My new favorite recipe that will now be added to the permanent collection! I bet this would be great with lots of different cheeses too! In fact, the original recipe calls for gruyere, but I chose to stick with cheddar since I didn't want to buy a $9 block of cheese unless it was being eaten au naturale.

Questions of the Day:

Have you ever lightened up your favorite comfort food dish? I love doing this! In general, I try to sub less butter, ground turkey and add veggies wherever I can!

What are your plan for this weekend? Shaun and I are heading down to Delaware - let's hope the weather stays nice! Then it's football Sunday! Stay tuned for Game Day Eats ideas next week!

psst...we're rounding up our highs (peaches) and lows (pits) of the week over on The Peach & The Pit...what's your best and worst of the week?

Asiago Fig Macaroni + Cheese

When the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board asked me to be a part of the 30 Days 30 Ways Macaroni & Cheese Blog to celebrate National Cheese Lover’s Day, I couldn’t wait to get a little creative with an old standard. There’s something inherently comforting and desirable about macaroni & cheese, don’t you think? I’m not sure if it’s the hearkening back to childhood or the mere richness and creaminess that feels appropriate only on a cold winter day while wearing sweatpants, but offer anyone a dish of warm, decadent macaroni & cheese and find one person to turn it down. It just won’t happen!

When I saw that Asiago was on the list of Wisconsin cheeses, it seemed like a fun flavor change up from what one traditionally thinks of in this classic dish. And once I had Asiago in my pocket, I knew it needed an equally delicious flavor to balance out the sharpness while taking the flavor profile to a whole new level.

Always one for the fruit and cheese combo, it’s no surprise that my flavor hunt led to figs. Not overly sweet, a light fig topping is the perfect balance in this dish. It complements the Asiago while adding an unusual twist!

To get the recipe, check out the full post on 30 Days 30 Ways!

Decadent Macaroni & Cheese

I don't like to lie to you.

In fact, I refuse to lie to you. So I'm not going to write this to you and pretend that this macaroni and cheese isn't the most decadent, filling and stomach-ache inducing of its kind. It is. But it's also the most delicious I've ever made. Or had. And I'd also be lying if I didn't tell you how I've been dreaming of it since preparing (and subsequently devouring) it at our dinner party on Saturday night.

This cheesy, rich macaroni & cheese is made grown-up by using cheeses for a sophisticated palette. No Velveeta here folks (though I'm not discounting its deliciousness). Instead, it's given an adult spin with Gruyere and Cheddar cheeses taking the spotlight. Since only a small portion is recommended (you know, for heart attack prevention purposes), we also dined on pulled pork and shredded turkey sandwiches with carrot-stuffed bell peppers made by my all-star chef Mom. Doesn't it scream Americana? I hope so, since that's the theme we were going for!

Since Mom is the keeper of the pulled pork/shredded turkey/stuffed pepper recipes, today I'm sharing with you my contribution to the main course, the mac & cheese. Is your mouth watering yet?

Decadent Macaroni & Cheese
*Adapted from Ina Garten
1 lb macaroni (elbow or cavatappi, which is what I used)
6 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 C all purpose flour
1 quart milk (4 C)
4 C Gruyere cheese, grated (12 oz)
2 C cheddar cheese, grated (8 oz)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 C bread crumbs (I used white bread with crusts removed)
1 tbsp kosher salt + more for pasta water

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Cook pasta according to box directions (remember to salt the water). Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat the milk, but do not boil it. In a separate, larger saucepan, melt 6 tbsp of butter and whisk in the flour until it forms a paste. Cook on low for 1-2 minutes, whisking constantly so that it doesn’t burn. Whisk in the milk, making sure that it all combines together and thickens. Turn off the heat and whisk or stir in the grated Gruyere and cheddar cheeses until smooth (Note: I grated mine the night before in my food processor fitted with the grater attachment. It made grating so much cheese a snap!). Stir in the nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Mix in the macaroni. I used one of my ginormous red mixing bowls to get 'er done. 

Place in a large baking dish. If making in advance, cover and set aside or refrigerate. If baking immediately, cover with breadcrumbs and bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes until browned and bubbly.

 

So there you have it. A tale of decadent, rich, creamy macaroni & cheese. Is it an everyday food? Certainly not. Is it enough to make you go mmmm? It certainly is. So what do you think? Are you a fan of macaroni & cheese? What's your favorite kind? And bonus question: What's your favorite decadent indulgence?