Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Who Thinks Nicole Will Try This?

I don't, but consider it a challenge. Now, you could make this recipe QUITE a bit healthier than posted here, but I'd accept this as a great start! I'll be making my healthier version as soon as I can get my hands on a squash!
200-Calorie Homemade Mac and Cheese!

1 small butternut squash (about 1 pound), peeled, seeded, and diced (about 3 cups)
1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
1 clove of garlic, smashed
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound whole wheat spirals
4 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, finely grated (about 1 cup)
4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, finely grated (1 ounce)
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons fine breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon olive oil
Olive-oil cooking spray, to grease baking pan

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Combine squash, garlic, stock, and milk in a medium saucepan; bring to a low boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until squash is tender when pierced with a fork, about 20 minutes. (Dicing reduced this time to 10 minutes.) Remove from heat.

2. Add noodles; cook until al dente according to package instructions, about 8 minutes. Mash contents of saucepan; stir in nutmeg, cayenne, and salt, and season with black pepper. Stir to combine.

3. Drain pasta, and transfer to a large bowl; stir in squash mixture, cheddar, ricotta, and 2 tablespoons Parmesan. (Honestly, you could also stop here. My boyfriend and I ate some of the pasta last night, and we skipped the step of baking it. It was more decadent and creamy as the baked version, but it lacked the crunchy topping. Eliminating the breadcrumb topping will cut half a gram of fat and 11 calories a serving.)

4. Lightly coat a 9-inch square baking dish (4 inches deep) with cooking spray. Transfer noodle mixture to dish.

5. In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs, remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan, and oil; sprinkle evenly over noodles.

6. Cover with foil, and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil, briefly broil to toast breadcrumb topping. Serve immediately.

Serves 8.

Per serving:
Calories: 200.0
Total Fat: 5.8 g

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Does she cook?

Nicole said...

Hey... I cook! Sometimes...