This healthy, lower-fat vegetable macaroni cheese is much healthier than your average macaroni cheese recipe and has plenty of cream cheese flavour too
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This vegetable macaroni cheese is crammed full with broccoli, cauliflower and tomatoes in a delicious creamy sauce.
Homemade macaroni beats anything you can buy in the shops. Processed versions often have a slightly synthetic taste - not the case with this from-scratch version. This recipe also contains plenty of vegetables to count towards your five-a-day. But what is really remarkable is how quick it is to put together - you can have it on the table in just 20 minutes. The bulk of the cooking is boiling the pasta, and throwing the vegetables in the pan after a few minutes to bubble along as well. After that, you literally just pop it under the grill to crisp for a few minutes. It's under 500 calories per portion, making it one of our favourite healthy pasta recipes (opens in new tab).
Ingredients
250g macaroni
1 large leek, trimmed and cut into chunks
300g mixed broccoli and cauliflower florets
350ml semi-skimmed milk
30g plain flour
1tsp English mustard
125g extra-mature Cheddar cheese, grated
Salt and black pepper
8 cherry tomatoes, halved
1tbsp Parmesan, freshly grated
WEIGHT CONVERTER
grams
to
cups
Method
Add the pasta to a large pan of boiling salted water. Bring back to the boil for 5 mins, then add the veg and cook for another 5-8 mins, until pasta and broccoli are almost tender. Drain, keeping about 150ml of the cooking water.
Meanwhile, put the milk in a large jug, whisk in the flour, and microwave for a few minutes, whisking occasionally, to make a thick sauce. Or make in a pan. Whisk in some of the cooking water to slacken sauce. Stir in the mustard and about a third of the cheese, and season.
Pre-heat the grill. Warm a flameproof dish under it for a few minutes. Mix the pasta and vegetables into the sauce. Spoon the mixture into the hot dish and sprinkle with the rest of the Cheddar. Arrange the tomatoes on top and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Brown the macaroni cheese under the grill.
Top tips for making vegetable macaroni cheese
It’s better to use a small amount of extra-mature Cheddar, rather than low-fat Cheddar. The low fat cheese has less flavour, so you’ll use more.
Jessica Dady is Senior Content Editor at Goodto.com and has over 10 years of experience as a digital journalist, specialising in all things food, recipes, and SEO. From the best food hampers to cookbooks, from the best cake stands to baking sets, Jessica has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to must-have food products. A passionate baker, she spends much of her time creating celebration cakes for friends and family - particularly for her two lucky children.
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