Phase II Friendly Macaroni & Cheese?

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2004
Phase II Friendly Macaroni & Cheese?
16
Fri, 05-06-2005 - 9:07pm
i've been wanting (i have small children) macaroni and cheese in the worst way. now, i'm not hungry and it's not an actual craving. but i make homemade mac and cheese for the kids and i used to eat it with them (and i wonder why i have to lose 30 lbs!). is there such a thing as whole wheat elbow macaroni?

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2005
Fri, 05-06-2005 - 9:29pm
Yes, you can buy whole wheat elbow noodles. Read the box carefully though to make sure you do not buy enriched whole wheat flour. You can make a SBD-friendly macaroni and cheese recipe using ff half and half and lf cheddar cheese. Let us know how it turns out!
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iVillage Member
Registered: 02-23-2004
Sat, 05-07-2005 - 11:38am

Yep, I've found whole wheat macaroni - buts hard to find. I usually end up using the spiral shape noodles (my kids like those better actually) Hodgson Mill makes that shape and its available in all my grocery stores in the regular pasta aisle.

Have yet to be able to convert my regualr mac n cheese recipe though - nothing I have tried works right. I usually start with butter and flour to make a rue, then add milk, making a Béchamel sauce, then add my cheese. Well ww flour does NOT work in this, it gets very lumpy no matter what I do, and it doesn't hold the cheese together, it seperates and gets grainy on me. Its much harder to make these creamy sauces work with low-fat things - fat holds sauces together, and with less fat, your sauce tends to seperate and fall apart!

I'm still working on it though, I've spent hours at it, and even called a friend who is a chef - I am going to try maybe cornstarch and making a slurry instead sometime. But for now, what I do for the kids is use milk and light Velveeta. It works well, makes it really creamy, etc. But personally I can't stand the taste of Velveeta, so I don't eat it. But the kids love it. I make a big batch at the beginning of the week and they have it as a side dish.

MichaelAnn
181/151.5/135



spring06sig2
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2004
Sat, 05-07-2005 - 11:52am

MichaelAnn,


That's exactly how I make my homemade mac n' cheese.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 08-09-2003
Sat, 05-07-2005 - 7:49pm

MichaelAnn, I'm also a mac-n-cheese junkie! My father always made the best, and it's such a comfort food for me (I'm sure I'm not alone in this). I know Velveeta is icky, but perhaps combining the lite Velveeta with another more palatable chesse might keep the sauce from separating? Of course, I'm sure the Velveeta is just a big brick of hydrogenated oil... Blech.

There is a really great vegan recipe for mac and "cheese," which I find to be a very satisfying substitute. It's creamy and "cheesy." I highly suggest giving this a try, if you can find nutritional yeast in your town. Try the bulk section of your local gourmet or natural foods store. Nutritional yeast is also quite addictive when you sprinkle it on popcorn, with a little soy sauce.

http://vegweb.com/recipes/misc/3987.shtml

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2004
Sat, 05-07-2005 - 9:27pm

Ilse,


I have never been a Velveeta fan and have generally thought it was not good for you, but recently I checked it out at the grocery store and was quite surprised to find that it is not as bad as I originally thought.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 08-09-2003
Sat, 05-07-2005 - 9:50pm

Oh! Thanks for posting that, Cathy. It would honestly have never occurred to me to even bother checking, because I just assumed that it would be totally SBD unfriendly. So, I guess I can stand by my suggestion to mix a low-fat cheese with a little velveeta, to keep it creamy. My father uses an extra-extra sharp cheddar in his macaroni and cheese, and uses the velveeta to keep it from getting grainy and oily. It works very well for him.

Ilse

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Sat, 05-07-2005 - 11:34pm

For my kids I mix equal parts of regular pasta with equal

Susan :)

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-02-2004
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 3:17am

Better Mac and Cheese
Ingredients:
2 T. smat balance
2 T. corn starch
½ c. fat-free evaporated milk
2 c. fat-free milk
¼ tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. dry mustard
6 oz. reduced-fat cheddar cheese, shredded
8 oz. whole wheat dry pasta, cooked according to package directions
1 c. broccoli florets, steamed (optional)
Instructions:
In large saucepan, melt margarine over low heat. Add corn starch gradually, while stirring constantly with a whisk. Cook for 1 minute.
Continuing to stir constantly, add both types of milk in a gradual stream, forming a white sauce that is smooth. Add pepper, Worcestershire and dry mustard. Add cheese and stir until melted. Stir in pasta and broccoli (if using) and serve immediately.

This is the brand of pasta I use it is 100% durum whole wheat pasta http://commerce24.pair.com/webstaff/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=00018&Category_Code=wheat




Edited 5/10/2005 1:25 am ET ET by laa1009
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2004
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 7:55am
Thanks for sharing this recipe.
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iVillage Member
Registered: 02-23-2004
Mon, 05-09-2005 - 10:30am
Couple questions: the recipe ingredients call for cornstarch, but in the instructions is says "add flour gradually" - but I don't see any flour in the ingredient list? So is this the cornstarch you add?
I've never made a roux with fat/cornstarch (always fat/flour) For some reason I had been told in culinary classes I took in college that corn starch must be disolved in a liquid first before adding for it to thicken properly (making a slurry). I've never heard of adding it to fat for a roux? Does this work for you? I'm going to have to try this - it could help A LOT with recipes for this diet as ww flour does not make a good roux (it lumps pretty badly no matter what the temp and how much whisking you do)
MichaelAnn


spring06sig2

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