Light Macaroni and Cheese with Spinach

"This updated recipe illustrates how you can lower the saturated fat, without sacrificing the rich, cheesy taste, in classic macaroni and cheese. A layer of spinach in the center adds flavor and nutritional value. From Cooking Club"
 
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photo by Redsie photo by Redsie
photo by Redsie
Ready In:
55mins
Ingredients:
10
Serves:
6
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ingredients

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directions

  • Heat oven to 400F.
  • Spray 8" square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
  • In small bowl, whisk 1/4 cup of the milk and flour until smooth.
  • In heavy medium saucepan, heat remaining 1 1/2 cups milk over medium heat until steaming.
  • Add flour mixture; cook 2-3 minutes or until sauce boils and thickens, whisking constantly.
  • Remove from heat; stir in cheddar cheese until melted.
  • Stir in cottage cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg.
  • Cook spinach according to package directions; drain.
  • Rinse under cold running water; squeeze out excess moisture.
  • Cook macaroni in large pot of boiling lightly salted water 4-5 minutes or until not quite tender, stirring often.
  • (Macaroni will continue to cook while baking.) Drain; rinse with cold water.
  • Drain again.
  • In large bowl, stir together cheese sauce and macaroni.
  • Spread half of the macaroni mixture in baking dish; spoon spinach over top.
  • Spread remaining macaroni mixture over spinach layer; sprinkle with wheat germ.
  • (Dish can be made to this point and refrigerated for 2 days or frozen for 2 months. Thaw in refrigerator before baking.) Bake 35-45 minutes or until bubbly and golden.
  • TIP*If you can't find wheat germ, substitute an equal amount of Parmesan cheese, cracker crumbs or bread crumbs.
  • VARIATION: To make Southwestern Macaroni and Cheese with Peppers, substitute 1 cup grated pepper Jack cheese for 1 cup of the cheddar cheese.
  • Omit the nutmeg.
  • Add 1 (4 1/2-oz.) can chopped mild green chiles, 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro and dash cayenne pepper to cheese sauce.
  • Omit spinach.
  • Instead, cook 2 cups thawed frozen pepper stir-fry vegetables in 1 teaspoon olive oil 3 to 4 minutes or until tender.
  • Replace spinach with pepper mixture.

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Reviews

  1. I was on a soft food diet as a result of a dental injury this Thanksgiving. I chose to make this as a side dish for the family and as a main course for me, and it was a hit all around. Many baked mac & cheese recipes can be rather bland, but the extra sharp cheddar makes it quite flavorful. Despite the "light" in its name, I was a little concerned about the fat content ( 52% DV saturated fat - ouch!) , so I used skim milk and non-fat cottage cheese and it was still extremely rich and tasty. I also used whole wheat pasta and fresh rather than frozen spinach. I doubled the recipe and cooked it in a 13"x9" casserole dish - perfect! This is one of those dishes that tastes even better as next-day leftovers.
     
  2. This was great! It definitely didn't taste like a "light" macaroni & cheese. I made a couple adjustments - I just stirred in some fresh spinach to the cheese sauce before tossing with the macaroni, I added some garlic powder with the salt & pepper, and I used a mix of parmesan cheese & bread crumbs on the top. I loved the crunchy top layer! I think the key to this is seasoning the cheese sauce really well.
     
  3. We don't usually eat dairy products in our family, so when we spurlge, the recipe had better be a good one! This recipe fits the bill. It was simple to prepare, and was promptly devoured by the family. Although I don't think any dairy based recipe can be truly healthy, this recipe was about as healthy as you can get with mac and cheese. The nutmeg was an especially tasty addition. We'll make this again, the next time we want to indulge ourselves.
     
  4. This recipe turned out to be quite tasty--and yes cream and cheesy--as well as easy to make. I used whole wheat pasta and it *still* tasted great! My toddler loved it. (and he ate the spinach too!)
     
  5. I made this to go along with the oven fried chicken we were having for dinner. I used a reduced carb. elbow macaroni and reduced fat cottage cheese. Next time I will reduce the amount of spinach and mix it in the mac and cheese instead of layering it.
     
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

I live in Las Vegas. I was lucky enough to run into Recipezaar around Nov. 2000 and got hooked quickly. I am a cookbook collector and have been collecting recipes for as long as I can remember. My DH had to build in shelves for all my cookbooks! I like to dabble with OAMC and for a few years hosted the Budget/OAMC forum with some great people over there. Even though I don't work in the forum any longer I've set up a lot of cookbooks for the purpose of OAMC and stretching food that might be helpful. Please feel free to check them out! I go on food jags and cooking jags! Please come say hi to me and chat on facebook. I currently host a blog for saving money through finding deals and coupons if you are interested. Most of the time I try to cook and have a good dinner on the table but I'll be honest enough to say there is still fast food occasionally in the budget! I have had such wonderful support here whenever I need it. Thank you all for being here! Just a quick note on how I rate recipes: ? 5 stars - This recipe is perfect. (My DH is truly a critic and doesn't give 5's unless it's amazing) I would recommend it to others and would definitely make again. ? 4 stars - This recipe was good but I would change something in it next time. ? 3 stars - This is a recipe I would not make again but it was OK ? 2 stars - This recipe I would not make again and we didn't like it at all ? 1 star - This recipes did not work out/taste was unappealing and wouldn't make again
 
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