Chef Uncovered: Just Say No

When I see that blue box in the supermarket aisle, my thoughts take me back my childhood and the cheesy goodness I knew as Mac ‘n Cheese.

I’m tempted to grab the cheap meal for my family that only has four ingredients: pasta, butter, milk and cheese*. (*Actually the cheese is a powder made up of milk derivatives, cheese culture, salt, food dyes, and a host of preservatives.) No this isn’t a D.A.R.E. lesson, I’m a dad and I say No to as many processed foods as I can and decide to make my own meals using fresh ingredients. I encourage you to do the same.

We, as parents, have the ability to provide the most nutritious meals for our children and I’ve chosen to eliminate as much processed foods as possible.

I’m not against processed foods all together, as there are some decent ones out there. I am a Minnesotan, frozen pizzas are my weakness. The ones I cut from our diets are the ready-made hamburger helper and Spaghetti O’s types. They are loaded with extra sugar, corn fillers, preservatives, and my least favorite, food dyes.

Our meals should be loaded with the good stuff, fresh ingredients loaded with nutrients.

I have found a great way to cut these processed foods and sneak in some extra good for you stuff too. If your kids are picky eaters, you will love this recipe. Trust me, they might not even know that they’re eating vegetables while enjoying on this incredible “Mac n’ Cheese”.

The secret ingredient is Vegetable Pasta!

It’s made just like normal pasta, but with added vegetable powders for an extra serving of veggies. It can be found at most grocery stores.

Just follow my easy recipe below for Macaroni and Cheese with Roasted Cauliflower; it has a lot less ingredients than the blue box. You can try this with other items mixed in such as corn, peas, chicken or even bacon.

INGREDIENTS:

4 T Butter

1/3 Cup Flour

2 Cups Milk 

2 Cups Cheddar Cheese, Shredded, divided. 

1 Head of Cauliflower

1# Vegetable Pasta

Olive Oil

Salt Pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

Pre-heat Oven to 400° F. Cut Cauliflower into bite size pieces and place on baking pan. Drizzle with Olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes stirring once until golden brown. Meanwhile, boil salted water and cook pasta until almost al-dente. In a sauce pot, melt the butter on Medium-Low heat. Add the flour and whisk until combined without lumps. Add 1 cup of milk while whisking to prevent lumps. Add the rest of the milk and whisk to ensure no flour is stuck on the bottom. Whisk occasionally until milk has thickened. Once thick, add all but ½ cup of the cheese and stir till melted and combined. Combine the pasta, cauliflower and cheese sauce in a casserole dish and stir till well combined. Top with the remaining cheese and bake at 400°F until cheese is melted.

(Taylor Kneubuhler is a Professional Chef and Chef Consultant from Stillwater, MN.  He can be reached at taylorkneubuhler@gmail.com)