My College Kitchen

I sort of always thought the idea of a ‘healthy mac & cheese’ was an oxymoron. Cutting out calories on a dish so universally cheesy and fattening seemed sacrilegious- however, I have to say my healthier spin on the carbalicious deliciousness is a winner. 

1 lb. whole wheat fussili

1 cup cubed sharp cheddar 

1 1/2 cup cubed non fat mozzarella 

4 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

2 1/2 cups non fat milk

1 tsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. lemon zest

1 clove garlic

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil water in large pasta pot (make sure to salt the pasta water before pasta goes in). Cook pasta for 7-10 minutes or until it’s mostly cooked, as it will finish baking in the oven. 

Cheese Sauce: 

Melt 4 tbl. spoons of butter in a medium pot then add the chopped clove of garlic and saute for about one minute. Once the garlic is sauteed sprinkle in the flour. Whisk this mixture until it combines and makes a thin paste, and cook for about 1 minute so the flour taste is cooked out of the mixture. Slowly pour in milk while whisking to make sure there are no lumps. Once milk is added bring to a simmer so the sauce can begin to thicken (this will take about 3 minutes). Then add both the cubed cheeses, pepper, dijon mustard and lemon zest. Stir until cheese has completely melted. 

Combine cheese sauce and drained pasta. I used a muffin tin to bake my Mac in because these 1 cup tins are great individual servings. I could easily eat way too much Mac & Cheese in one sitting, and baking them in portions prevents me from devouring more than I should. 

Spray Muffin tins with a good amount of non-stick spray or butter. Fill muffin tins with one cup of cheesy pasta goodness. Lastly, the best part of all this… the topping. Combine 1/2 cup parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs in a bowl. Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of topping on each serving. Then to finish put a small (1/4 tsp.) pat of butter on each serving so the topping can get crispy. Bake for 35 minutes.

Let them cool for about 15 minutes before serving- and ENjoiiiii ! 

I had a fellow Art Director and soul sista help me with these Banana Pops. After making Mac & Cheese (recipe to come) we were craving something sweet but light. Dipping bananas in melted chocolate peanut butter then rolling it in various toppings was the perfect finish to our meal.

-cut 4 bananas in half and stick on to popsicle stick then stick them in the freezer for 30 minutes to firm up.

-melt 3 large chocolate bars (milk or dark) 

- stir in 1/2 cup of all natural chunky peanut butter into melted chocolate mixture

- carefully dip bananas into melted mixture then roll into toppings of your choice: pretzels, honey roasted peanuts, sprinkles, crushed oreos, gram cracker crumbs, granola, etc. 

Enjoy them freshly dipped or frozen

Back at Art School = infrequent posting abilities. 

Recipes: To be Continued….