Cauliflower Mac 'N Cheese

Recipe by Sara Schmidt
Fit Mama; wife and mom of 2 boys. Fitness and Nutrition Enthusiast and  Professional

     Oooh!  Mac n Cheese, stick to your ribs and purely satisfied. But  trying to find a healthier version can be tricky.

        As a kid all that my brother and I wanted was Kraft, or Velveeta mac'n cheese, even though my mom loved making homemade. It’s funny how our taste buds change as we get older. Don’t get me wrong, both are  still loved in this house today but everything in moderation.  Sometimes the moderation part can be hard. This lead me wanting to  find a somewhat healthier recipe that still had the stick to your ribs  and purely satisfied feeling.  So, my solution... I simply swapped the
noodles for nutrient rich cauliflower!

Ingredients:
1 medium sized head cauliflower, chopped in chunks    (frozen can be used as well)
2 Tbs real unsalted butter     (let’s skip margarine friends)
1.5 Tbs  flour    (you can try substituting with a healthier flour like  quinoa flour or spelt flour)
2 cups shredded cheddar   (I shred my own, some pre shredded cheeses can have an additive synthetically made to keep it from clumping)
1.5 cups of some milk base (I have used 1%, 2% and heavy, it’s your  preference. They all worked the same for me, tasted the same. You may  need a tad less or more depending on how much cheese sauce you need.)
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper

1) Boil water and cauliflower in larger pot. Once tender, drain cauliflower in a strainer.
2) In the same pan while cauliflower drains, put burner on low heat and add  butter. Stir. Be careful to not let it burn.  
3)  Once melted, add flour until your mixture becomes a paste like  consistency, while still constantly stirring.
4) Add your cheese and your milk base while stirring slowly. Do this  until it becomes a cheese sauce. You may not need all milk or you may  choose to add  more, depending on size of cauliflower head you use.
 5)  Stir in salt and pepper and remove from heat.
6) Quickly chop up cooked cauliflower that has now been drained  and pour into cheese sauce over a low heat, stirring to coat the cauliflower.  I promise you, it will be  WAAAYYY quicker the 2nd time around, once  you have the routine down!
7) Toss a little shredded cheese on top and then pour the entire dish  into a  crock pot on warm. Works great for a large gathering!

OPTIONAL: Add a few bread crumb sprinkles and toss in the oven on 350  for 15minutes until bread crumbs are golden brown.

My kids highly approve of this recipe and it’s a great “treat” side  dish.  Check out the recipes tab on the right for more healthy and delicious recipes!