Pimento Mac & Cheese

I have been hanging on to this recipe for ages.  Like maybe 3 years?  I kept it because I wanted something easy and at the time, I was still looking for the perfect mac & cheese recipe.  Since then, I've realized that I don't think I can commit to one mac & cheese.  But that's ok.  Cooper is a fan of pasta and cheese, so I think he'll help me try a few more.

This did turn out to be a pretty easy recipe, so I think it will turn up on the menu again.  I really like having an option that doesn't have to be baked off in the oven, especially for a weeknight.

Pimento Mac & Cheese from Southern Living

• 8 oz penne pasta (or any small pasta)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 cups skim milk
• 1 cup shredded Sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1 2oz jar pimentos, drained
• salt & pepper
• pinch of paprika

Boil the pasta in salted water according to the package.  Drain and set aside.  In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and 1/4 cup milk.  Stir in the remaining milk until the mixture is smooth. In a large skillet over med-high heat, bring the milk mixture to a boil while whisking.  Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, continuing to whisk, for an additional 3-5 minutes.  Add the cheese, pimentos & spices, stirring until the cheese is melted.  Stir in the pasta and cook for another minute, until the pasta is warmed.

Cheddar & Chive Muffins

There is only one thing that could have made these muffins taste better.  Bacon.  Thing is, I didn't realize that until after they were baked and I was burning my mouth trying to taste one warm, right out of the oven.  Jason and I both agreed that these could (and should) be made again.  Possibly one weekend that Bear & Bridget come to visit...however we also agreed that we would need to double the recipe since Bear would devour at least a dozen just standing in the kitchen.

Cheddar & Chive Muffins adapted from Sugar Crafter

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 T sugar
• 1 T baking powder
• 1/2 t kosher salt
• 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 3-4 T fresh chives, chopped
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup skim milk
• 2 T unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 375.  Lightly grease a mini-muffin pan.  In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.  Stir in the grated cheese & chives.  See, this is where you could add cooked, crumbled bacon!  In another bowl, combine the milk, egg & butter.  Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until everything is moist.  Spoon into the mini-muffin pan and bake about 15-20 minutes, or until golden on top.

I got 36 of the mini-muffins from one batch.  If you don't have two pans, or you don't want to wait on the first batch to bake, and then bake again you can always add a little more batter to each and get an even two dozen.



WW PointsPlus: 1 pt per muffin for a batch of 36

Fontina Mac & Cheese

I have a slight cheese obsession.  That turns into a cheese problem.  I constantly want to buy and try new cheese.  Then I remember I'm on a diet and really, cheese isn't the most diet friendly thing to eat.  So then it sits in the fridge.  This half-eaten block of "fancy" cheese.  Cooper gets some of it, but you can only give a kid so much cheese before you have problems.  Although he'd disagree - the boy loves cheese!
Every once in a while, I try to find a recipe that will help clean out the cheese drawer.  I've been trying to move past the fontina & havarti that have been in the fridge for a few weeks.  After doing my blog-hopping I came across a recipe for Fontina Mac & Cheese over at Annie's Eats.  I knew I didn't have the right amount of fontina, but I figured finishing it with just a little havarti would work.

Mac & cheese is usually something I'm a little afraid of because there is a fine line between it being creamy and dry.  I've screwed up plenty of batches, trust me!  This one, though, turned out to be pretty easy and tasted great.  I made a few changes to make it a little healthier, although I think that changing the cream to half & half will cause it to dry out a little bit.  It was pretty creamy the first night, but for leftovers I'm probably going to add in a little more half & half before baking in small ramekins.

Fontina Mac & Cheese adapted from Annie's Eats

• 1 13.5oz box whole wheat pasta (I went with the shells)
• 5 T unsalted butter, divided
• 1 cup half and half
• 5oz fontina, shredded
• 3oz havarti, shredded
• salt & pepper
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• 1/3 cup panko bread crumbs
• 2 T grated parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400.  Boil the pasta in salted water to just shy of al dente.  In a large bowl, dice 4 tablespoons of the unsalted butter.  Warm the half & half in the microwave or on the stove top and keep warm.  Drain the pasta and pour over the butter.  Stir in the half & half and the cheese until the cheese is melted.  Add in salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.

Pour the pasta into a baking dish.  Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter and add in the panko.  Pour over the pasta and add shredded parmesan.  Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the top begins to brown.

WW PointsPlus: 8 pts for 10 servings

Lesson: How to get your baby to eat his vegetables

Cooper likes most vegetables, but he can be pretty picky.  Like with green beans and broccoli...not going to happen.  He'll take one bite and spit it right back out.

He does, however, have a passion for cheese.  My child has eaten more varieties of cheese in his 14 months than I did the in the first 14 years of my life.  If he sees the package of cheese come out of the fridge, he starts reaching and grunting until I hand it over.

This weekend I bough some fresh broccoli and was looking for something different (but healthy) to do with it.  We usually roast it, tossing the broccoli in a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar first.  Or we just steam it topped with a little salt and pepper.  I like it steamed but I wanted something different.  Cue the cheese sauce below.  It is actually a Cooking Light recipe, so score!  I have a love/hate relationship with cheese sauces that start with "stir milk into flour over medium heat."  I usually end up with clumpy flour and non-melted cheese.  This time, though, was a success!  We loved the sauce and it was so easy.

But the best part - Cooper ate his broccoli!  We were hesitant to let him try it, but he was a fan.  Lesson learned.  If you want your baby to eat his vegetables, then cover them in cheese.

The only downside to this recipe is that it makes quite a bit and leftover broccoli isn't that great. 

Broccoli with Cheddar Sauce adapted from Cooking Light

• 1/2 T flour
• 1/2 cup skim milk (I ended up adding a little more than 1/2 a cup)
• 1/4 cup fresh shredded 2% cheddar cheese
• 2 T grated parmesan cheese
• about 1/2 t Dijon mustard
• salt & pepper
• a pinch of ground thyme
• steamed broccoli

Place flour into a sauce pan and gradually stir in milk.  Over medium-high heat, stir until milk is smooth and it begins to bubble and thicken.  Continue to heat for an additional minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from the head and stir in remaining ingredients.  Pour over steamed broccoli.

WW PointsPlus: 2 PP per serving