Is it even possible to make a healthy Macaroni & Cheese?   Oh yes, my friends, it is!   It doesn’t rank up there with Kale Salad on a nutritional level but we can make our kids happy when we serve this and not feel guilty that they aren’t getting their vitamins and minerals.

This is a special meal for our family.  It’s not on the weekly meal rotation.   It’s one of those things I make when I want to make my kids REALLY happy!

So, how do we make Macaroni & Cheese healthy?  We keep it plant-based.   It’s all about the ingredients. So let’s talk about a few of those.

Gluten Free, Whole Grain Pasta.

Why?   Whole grain pasta, such as brown rice pasta is less processed and more nutritious.   It has more vitamins, minerals and fiber per serving.

Even before we realized my daughter had a gluten allergy, we had switched from eating regular (highly processed) pasta to brown rice pasta, just because it was a healthier choice.

If you’ve never cooked brown rice pasta before, make sure to follow the cooking directions and rinse your pasta after cooking.  Also be aware, most gluten free pasta will not have the same texture the next day.  It tends to get a little tough overnight in the refrigerator.

My favorite pasta right now is  Live G Free Organic Brown Rice & Quinoa  (from Aldi.)   It cooks and tastes most like regular pasta and even holds up well in the refrigerator.  Currently, you can only get Live G Free Organic Brown Rice & Quinoa in fusilli (spirals) or penne pasta.   While neither is the ideal shape for our Healthy Macaroni and Cheese, I’ve used the fusilli in a pinch and it works out just fine.

Another good substitute is Tinkyada brown rice elbow macaroni (available at most Walmart stores in the Gluten Free section.)

  The Cheese Sauce

It pretty amazing that we can make our cheese sauce taste so very cheesy while keeping it plant-based! This is all thanks to the wonderful ingredient nutritional yeast.  ( I’ve talked all about nutritional yeast in a past post.)   Thanks to nutritional yeast. lemon juice, and pure maple syrup, we get that tangy cheese flavor but without the dairy.

 Give the recipe a try and let me know what you think!

Healthy Macaroni and Cheese Your Kids Will Love

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb quinoa & brown rice elbow macaroni, shells, or similar sized pasta or brown rice pasta

• 1/4 cup coconut oil, Earth Balance non dairy butter, or other non dairy butter

• 1/3 cup gluten free flour (brown rice flour, garbanzo flour, etc.)

• 2 cups plain, unsweetened almond milk

• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast (more about it here)

• 2 tsp sea salt

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

• 1 tbsp pure maple syrup

• 4 tbsp gluten free bread crumbs  (I put a piece of Gluten Free bread in the food processor)

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly oil a 9 X 13 inch casserole dish with coconut or olive oil.

• Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.  Add pasta and cook according to package directions.  Drain, rinse and return to the pot.

• While pasta is cooking, in a medium saucepan, make a roux by whisking the coconut oil (or non dairy butter) with flour over medium heat.   Add almond milk, nutritional yeast, salt, and garlic powder to the saucepan.  Bring to a boil, whisking frequently.

• Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the sauce thickens. Stir in lemon juice and maple syrup. Adjust seasoning to taste and toss pasta with the sauce. Transfer to a casserole dish.  Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.  Remove from the oven and let rest 5 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

–Jen

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Healthy Macaroni and Cheese Your Kids Will Love (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Course

Main Dish, Sides

Cook Time

30 minutes

Servings

serving

Ingredients

• 1 lb quinoa & brown rice elbow macaroni, shells or similar shaped pasta or brown rice pasta
• 1/4 cup Earth Balance, non dairy butter, or coconut oil
• 1/3 cup gluten free flour (brown rice flour, garbanzo flour, etc.)
• 2 cups plain, unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 4 tbsp gluten free bread crumbs I put a piece of gluten free bread in the food processor

Course Main Dish, Sides Cook Time 30 minutes Servings serving Ingredients 1 lb quinoa & brown rice elbow macaroni, shells or similar shaped pasta or brown rice pasta 1/4 cup Earth Balance, non dairy butter, or coconut oil 1/3 cup gluten free flour (brown rice flour, garbanzo flour, etc.) 2 cups plain, unsweetened almond milk 1/2 cup nutritional yeast 2 tsp sea salt 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice 1 tbsp pure maple syrup 4 tbsp gluten free bread crumbs I put a piece of gluten free bread in the food processor

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 9 X 13 inch casserole dish with coconut or olive oil.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain, rinse and return to the pot.
3. While pasta is cooking, in a medium saucepan, make a roux by whisking the coconut oil (or non-dairy butter) with flour over medium heat. Add almond milk, nutritional yeast, salt, and garlic powder to the saucepan. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently.
4. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the sauce thickens. Stir in lemon juice and maple syrup. Adjust seasoning to taste and toss pasta with the sauce. Transfer to a casserole dish. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is lightly browned. Remove from the oven and let rest 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe Notes

Recipe by Jennifer Prentice @ www.myhealthyhomemadelife.com

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