CREAMY, LIGHT MACARONI AND CHEESE

Last night was meatless Tuesday, aka cooking with my vegetarian niece Brittany. She is quite creative so I asked her to write the text for this post. Take it away Britty!!!

Want to travel back in time to when you didn't care about calories and could gobble up a full plate of mac and cheese with a hot dog on the side, and not gain any weight? Well we can't do that, but we can give you a recipe for mac and cheese that won't make you gain a pound.

This delicious recipe does not use any cream, but still has the most delicious texture and color of the creamy homemade mac and cheese you know and love...what's our secret?

                                             

                                               Butternut squash!!!!!

Squash is simmered until tender in broth, milk and garlic. When it is tender it is pureed in the blender and mixed with Gruyere, pecorino and Parmesan cheese. Add cooked cavatappi pasta and top with browned bread crumbs.

Pop in the oven and bake until hot and bubbly. Sprinkle with parsley and enjoy guilt free!

For even more fun serve this with a Skinny Girl Margarita (available at most grocery stores) and watch the pounds melt away.

                                          CREAMY, LIGHT MACARONI AND CHEESE

3 cups cubed peeled butternut squash (about 1 pound squash)

1 1/4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth (or vegetable broth)

1 1/2 cups fat-free milk

2 minced garlic cloves

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 TBSP. fat-free Greek yogurt

1 1/4 cups (5 ounces) shredded Gruyere cheese

1 cup (4 ounces) grated pecorino romano cheese

1/4 cup (1 ounce) finely grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided

1 pound uncooked cavatappi pasta

Cooking spray

1 tsp. olive oil

1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

2n TBSP. chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 375~.

Combine squash, broth, milk, and garlic in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until squash is tender when pierced with a fork, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat.

Place the hot squash mixture in a blender. Add salt, pepper, and Greek yogurt. Remove the center piece of the blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Place blended squash mixture in a bowl; stir in Gruyere , pecorino romano and 2 TBSP. Parmigiano-Reggiano. Stir until combined.

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain well. Add pasta to squash mixture, and stir until combined. Spread mixture evenly into a 13 x 9-inch glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add panko, and cook for 2 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from heat; stir in remaining 2 TBSP Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Sprinkle evenly over the hot pasta mixture. Lightly coat topping with cooking spray.

Bake at 375~ for 25 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle with parsley, and serve immediately.

Recipe from Cooking Light Magazine



ITALIAN SAUSAGE CASSEROLE

When you go on vacation for close to three weeks and you ask a 10 year old to water your plants and to PLEASE "pick any vegetables you want and take them home to your mother" guess what? You return to every vegetable you left....DUH!!! I forgot....most kids really don't like vegetables. I think he took great pleasure in watch my zucchinis grow an inch a day. So, I returned to GIANT zucchinis.

I decided they would be best grated into something, so I made a crust of grated zucchini (4 cups) some cornmeal, eggs, and cheese. I baked it in the oven until it was, uh, crusty!



It made a nice, firm, cheesy crust. I had to refrain myself from eating the crust by itself.  I think I'll make some crust squares this week just for munchin' on.

The next step was to brown some meat and onions, and add a can of tomato sauce. The recipe called for ground beef but I thought that was boring so I used a spicy Italian turkey sausage. When the meat is cooked you put it on the crust, top with cheese and some bell peppers. Bell pepper and ground beef = boring, so I roasted some poblano peppers and topped the meat with slices.

Baked in the oven for about 20 minutes until the cheese melted and served with a salad. It was quite tasty and even better the day after.

Only 10 more GIANT zucchinis to go.

                                                             ITALIAN SAUSAGE CASSEROLE

4 cups shredded unpeeled zucchini

1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided in half

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese, divided in half

2 TBSP. cornmeal or polenta

1 pound ground Italian sausage (I like a good quality turkey sausage)

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1 TBSP. olive oil (if using turkey sausage)

1 can (15 ounces) Italian tomato sauce

2 poblano chili peppers, roasted, peeled, and sliced

Place zucchini in strainer. Sprinkle with salt. Let stand for 10 minutes. Squeeze out moisture. Be sure to squeeze all the moisture out so the crust will not be soggy.

Combine zucchini with the eggs, cornmeal, Parmesan cheese, half of the mozzarella and half of the cheddar cheese. Mix well and press into a greased 13x9 inch baking dish.

Bake uncovered at 400~ for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the sausage and onions in olive oil, over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Drain off fat. Add tomato sauce and mix together. Spoon over zucchini crust.

Sprinkle with remaining cheese and top with the roasted pepper. Bake 20 minutes longer or until the cheese is melted and the meat is heated through.

Serves 6-8

CHILI CORNBREAD PIE

My friend Bart sent me this recipe to try. It was really good and so versatile. You could do almost anything thing with this basic recipe to make it your own. Add some cheese or some onions or garlic. I liked the meat mixture so much that I was full before I put the topping on and put it in the oven. The meat mixture would work really well for tacos or tostadas.

I used Trader Joe's corn bread mix. It was a little sweet for me but I think Jiffy brand might be less sweet and I'll use that next time.

Thanks Bart for sending me the recipe!

                                                      CHILI CORNBREAD PIE

1 lb. ground turkey or lean ground beef

1 packet (4 oz.) chili seasoning or taco seasoning mix (I used spicy taco seasoning)

2 cans (8 oz. each) tomato sauce

1 can (15 1/4 oz.) no salt added, whole kernel corn, drained ( I used Trade Joe's Fire Roasted Corn)

1 can (15oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (12 oz.) Nestle Carnation evaporated milk, divided in half

1 can (4 oz.) green chilies, drained (optional)

2 boxes (8.5 oz. each) dry corn muffin mix

2 large eggs

Sliced avocado, salsa and/or sour cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 400~. Grease a 13x9" baking dish.

Cook turkey in large skillet over medium high heat until turkey is no longer pink; drain. Stir in chili seasoning, tomato sauce, corn, beans, evaporated milk and chilies. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour into prepared baking dish.

Combine corn muffin mix, remaining 3/4 cup reserved evaporated milk and eggs in a medium bowl.; stir until just moistened. Spread mixture over meat filling.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with chopped avocado, sour cream and salsa.

Serves 10-12

MEXICAN CORN BREAD



Oh My Gosh.....this is so good. It's not really Corn Bread, it is more like a casserole, but it is DELISH.

I make this once every year or two. It usually takes me that long to collect 1/2 cup of bacon fat. Yes, 1/2 cup....but that is what puts this recipe over the top. I just pour my bacon grease in a container and keep it in the freezer until I have enough to make this.

                                                   MEXICAN CORN BREAD

1 cup yellow corn meal

1 cup whole milk

2 eggs, well beaten

½ tsp. baking soda

¾ tsp. salt

1- 16oz. can cream style corn

½ cup bacon drippings

¾ lb. hamburger meat

1 medium onion

½ lb. Cheddar cheese

4 jalapeno peppers

Mix first 7 ingredients and set aside.  Brown and drain hamburger meat.  Chop onion, grate cheddar cheese and chop jalapenos. 

Heat cast iron skillet, grease and sprinkle with corn meal.  Pour in half of corn batter, and then layer meat, cheese, onions and peppers, then rest of the corn batter.

Bake one hour at 325~

Make sure to beat eggs before adding to batter so it will hold together.

My friend Bart gave me this recipe many years ago.