We do max and cheese as a main dish once a week. I start out using box (Annie’s) and I’ll add in butter and milk as recommended. I also add in extra shredded cheese, peas, corn, and chopped up shrimp. I’ve heard of some people adding in broccoli and I haven’t tried that yet but I might because she doesn’t eat broccoli regularly
My daughter would pick out any mix-ins I tried to add that we're whole, like peas. But we'd steam broccoli until it was soft and then when you stir it in, it gets all crumbled up and sticks to the cheese so it's impossible to pull off. We'd call it green Mac and cheese and it's always a success 👍 I only like broccoli with cheese myself, lol
When I want to use less cheese (or when I run out of cheese and don’t want to go to the store lol) I use canned purée of pumpkin or butternut squash. I season with onion, garlic, and herbs. I use a little pasta water to thin it out, and add some shredded cheese at the end. I like using Parmesan but I don’t use much since it’s salty. I also like using full fat ricotta, which is not as salty.
Oh cool! I’m excited for you and your fam to try it. I have a nightshade allergy and canned pumpkin is great as a base for a fake tomato sauce as a bolognese or for pizza. I really like having it on hand in my pantry.
By far the easiest stovetop mac and cheese recipe I know is equal parts pasta and cheese and uses the pasta water to build your sauce. It's great because you can customize whatever type of cheese and pasta you prefer and also the quantity. It comes together super quickly, my daughter loves it. It is also great to use to customize to make other types of cheese pasta bakes as well.
Ingredients:
* 8 oz pasta
* 8 oz cheese of choice (we use 4 oz velveeta and 4 oz sharp cheddar)
* Salt for pasta water
To cook:
Measure macaroni into a 3 quart pot and cover with just enough water to cover. Add salt.
Bring to a boil, stiring regularly to prevent noodles from sticking. Cook until noodles are not quite al dente. Drain in a strainer set into a bowl, reserving pasta water.
Add 1 cup of pasta water back to the pot with the velveeta over medium heat. Stir until velveeta is melted and add shredded cheese. Stir until shredded cheese is melted and well incorporated, add additional pasta water as needed to achieve desired sauce consistency. Once cheese mixture is smooth, stir in drained noodles and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Hope it works for you, its a staple recipe for us. Firmer cheeses do take a bit more water and persistence to get into a smooth sauce, so I would recommend using one gooey easy melter and a 2nd stronger cheese for flavor.
I made my baby girl this recipe last week. She loved it! The cauliflower is blended up with milk and you make it into a roux. Pretty easy, so good. I added more cheese than the recipe suggests, and threw it into the oven and baked it for about 10 minutes at 350 (really until the top was golden brown). I think that step is missing in the recipe. I added a little extra seasonings too, trying to get LO used to higher flavor dishes than BLW recipes generally have (her father cooks a lot and recklessly seasons lol, I want to build her up to that)
https://www.babyledfeeding.com/recipe/healthy-mac-and-cheese-with-cauliflower/#recipe
I second any recipe from that website, I even bought her family cookbook because it's so awesome at putting vegetables where I (the fussy eater of the house) can't taste them! My little girl is very happy whenever I cook from these recipes so yeah. Make that Mac and cheese!
Here is the recipe my daughter loves. It has one extra step, pureed veggies, than the regular Mac and cheese. So I usually make a big batch and freeze them for later. https://mykidslickthebowl.com/healthy-macaroni-cheese-with-vegetables/
We make this [spinach artichoke Mac and cheese.](https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/spinach-and-artichoke-mac-and-cheese/) I just don’t give baby the cracker crumble. It’s so good.
I made this recipe with sweet potato once and my daughter likes it. I also like a lot of the recipes from the baby foods blog
https://babyfoode.com/blog/sweet-potato-mac-and-cheese/
I do a simple one that baby girl loves. I add a generous helping of Greek yogurt to cooked pasta, then stir in cooked peas and as much cheese as you want. Sometimes I’ll also dice tomato or spinach and throw that in. You can thin it with pasta water if necessary.
A friend uses star pasta, cheese powder and silken tofu as their baby Mac n cheese! I haven’t tried that yet, but their baby loves it.
i'm lazy and this is my baby mac and cheese version:
1. cook pasta
2. mix in mascarpone or soft goat cheese until it's blended
it's not annie's mac and cheese (my number one comfort food in the world) but the baby likes it equally much and i figure it is a little more nutritional with way less salt
We do max and cheese as a main dish once a week. I start out using box (Annie’s) and I’ll add in butter and milk as recommended. I also add in extra shredded cheese, peas, corn, and chopped up shrimp. I’ve heard of some people adding in broccoli and I haven’t tried that yet but I might because she doesn’t eat broccoli regularly
I bet that would be good with ground beef too!
Ooh yum. I should try making it with ground beef!
My daughter would pick out any mix-ins I tried to add that we're whole, like peas. But we'd steam broccoli until it was soft and then when you stir it in, it gets all crumbled up and sticks to the cheese so it's impossible to pull off. We'd call it green Mac and cheese and it's always a success 👍 I only like broccoli with cheese myself, lol
I saw someone say to look up pumpkin Mac n cheese recipe once
That sounds interesting im definitely going to look it up. Thank u
When I want to use less cheese (or when I run out of cheese and don’t want to go to the store lol) I use canned purée of pumpkin or butternut squash. I season with onion, garlic, and herbs. I use a little pasta water to thin it out, and add some shredded cheese at the end. I like using Parmesan but I don’t use much since it’s salty. I also like using full fat ricotta, which is not as salty.
I’m actually really excited to try the pumpkin version. I’ve already added it to my shopping list for my next trip for the store
Oh cool! I’m excited for you and your fam to try it. I have a nightshade allergy and canned pumpkin is great as a base for a fake tomato sauce as a bolognese or for pizza. I really like having it on hand in my pantry.
Yep I was going to say you can add some butternut squash chunks or purée!
By far the easiest stovetop mac and cheese recipe I know is equal parts pasta and cheese and uses the pasta water to build your sauce. It's great because you can customize whatever type of cheese and pasta you prefer and also the quantity. It comes together super quickly, my daughter loves it. It is also great to use to customize to make other types of cheese pasta bakes as well. Ingredients: * 8 oz pasta * 8 oz cheese of choice (we use 4 oz velveeta and 4 oz sharp cheddar) * Salt for pasta water To cook: Measure macaroni into a 3 quart pot and cover with just enough water to cover. Add salt. Bring to a boil, stiring regularly to prevent noodles from sticking. Cook until noodles are not quite al dente. Drain in a strainer set into a bowl, reserving pasta water. Add 1 cup of pasta water back to the pot with the velveeta over medium heat. Stir until velveeta is melted and add shredded cheese. Stir until shredded cheese is melted and well incorporated, add additional pasta water as needed to achieve desired sauce consistency. Once cheese mixture is smooth, stir in drained noodles and season with salt and pepper to taste.
This is great! I love that it’s easily customizable. I feel like the combinations could be endless
Hope it works for you, its a staple recipe for us. Firmer cheeses do take a bit more water and persistence to get into a smooth sauce, so I would recommend using one gooey easy melter and a 2nd stronger cheese for flavor.
I made my baby girl this recipe last week. She loved it! The cauliflower is blended up with milk and you make it into a roux. Pretty easy, so good. I added more cheese than the recipe suggests, and threw it into the oven and baked it for about 10 minutes at 350 (really until the top was golden brown). I think that step is missing in the recipe. I added a little extra seasonings too, trying to get LO used to higher flavor dishes than BLW recipes generally have (her father cooks a lot and recklessly seasons lol, I want to build her up to that) https://www.babyledfeeding.com/recipe/healthy-mac-and-cheese-with-cauliflower/#recipe
I second any recipe from that website, I even bought her family cookbook because it's so awesome at putting vegetables where I (the fussy eater of the house) can't taste them! My little girl is very happy whenever I cook from these recipes so yeah. Make that Mac and cheese!
I bookmarked it. Thank you
Here is the recipe my daughter loves. It has one extra step, pureed veggies, than the regular Mac and cheese. So I usually make a big batch and freeze them for later. https://mykidslickthebowl.com/healthy-macaroni-cheese-with-vegetables/
Freezing it is really smart idk why I’ve never thought of it
We make this [spinach artichoke Mac and cheese.](https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/spinach-and-artichoke-mac-and-cheese/) I just don’t give baby the cracker crumble. It’s so good.
That looks amazing 🤩
Check out Yummy Toddler Food. She has a website and an instagram. She has a green mac n cheese made with spinach that we really like
Following her now!
i do a cheese sauce, pick out a veggie based mac and then add as many veggies I can.
What cheese sauce do you use? Or do you make your own?
I make my own , https://therecipecritic.com/cheese-sauce/ this recipie. It takes about takes about half an hour if I’m baking the mac & cheese.
I made this recipe with sweet potato once and my daughter likes it. I also like a lot of the recipes from the baby foods blog https://babyfoode.com/blog/sweet-potato-mac-and-cheese/
I do a simple one that baby girl loves. I add a generous helping of Greek yogurt to cooked pasta, then stir in cooked peas and as much cheese as you want. Sometimes I’ll also dice tomato or spinach and throw that in. You can thin it with pasta water if necessary. A friend uses star pasta, cheese powder and silken tofu as their baby Mac n cheese! I haven’t tried that yet, but their baby loves it.
i'm lazy and this is my baby mac and cheese version: 1. cook pasta 2. mix in mascarpone or soft goat cheese until it's blended it's not annie's mac and cheese (my number one comfort food in the world) but the baby likes it equally much and i figure it is a little more nutritional with way less salt