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Healthified Macaroni and Cheese

Healthified Macaroni and Cheese
Recipe Tip
What is “Healthified”?
We've replaced ingredients with great-tasting alternatives to create better-for-you recipes that are just as yummy as the originals.
Success
Strongly flavored Cheddar cheese, Dijon mustard and cayenne pepper bump up the flavor of this lower-fat version of macaroni and cheese.

15

reviews

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Based on 56 ratings

59% less fat • 54% less sat fat • 24% fewer calories than the original recipe—see the comparison. Make it “my mac and cheese” with simple changes to lower the fat and a few flavor boosters to make you love it. From eatbetteramerica.
Prep Time:20 min
Start to Finish:45 min
makes:6 servings (1 cup each)
2cups uncooked regular or whole wheat elbow macaroni (8 oz)
2cups fat-free (skim) milk
3tablespoons Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
1teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4teaspoon salt
1/4teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
2cups shredded reduced-fat sharp Cheddar cheese (8 oz)
1.In 3-quart saucepan, cook and drain macaroni as directed on package. Return to saucepan; cover to keep warm.
2.Meanwhile, heat oven to 350°F. Spray 8-inch square (2-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. In 2-quart saucepan, stir milk, flour, mustard, salt, black pepper and red pepper with wire whisk until smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils and thickens. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese until melted.
3.Add cheese sauce to cooked macaroni; mix well. Spoon into baking dish.
4.Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until edges are bubbly.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): In step 4, bake 25 to 30 minutes.
Nutritional Information
1 Serving: Calories 340 (Calories from Fat 80); Total Fat 9g (Saturated Fat 5g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 25mg; Sodium 640mg; Total Carbohydrate 44g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 5g); Protein 19Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 10%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 40%; Iron 10Exchanges: 3 Starch; 0 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 1 1/2 Medium-Fat Meat Carbohydrate Choices: 3 
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
 
15 Reviews

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healthified mac n' cheese
Yuk! I was not impressed at all. If this is the version of healthy, I would rather make the "old" version and eat less. This recipe had no taste to it at all and was gritty. Looked good going in and coming out though!
Posted at 10:56 AM on November 23 2011 by michele finleyville
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Posted at 10:55 AM on November 23 2011 by
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Posted at 10:55 AM on November 23 2011 by
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Flavor was pretty good but for some reason the texture was a little grainy
Posted at 1:52 PM on August 23 2011 by Kaitlinicole
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yuck
not yummy. It was not smooth and tasteless. I was NOT impressed!
Posted at 3:25 PM on March 18 2010 by
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Not so Great
This recipe is less than OK. Like the other reviews, this dish is very bland unless you add other ingredients to it. I added extra cayenne pepper to give it some flavor, but it doesn't really help. I would suggest making the light version of Kraft Mac & Cheese over this. At least that is tasty.
Posted at 3:30 PM on March 11 2009 by mdinslage
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Healthified Mac n' Cheese
My family and I are extremely disappointed with the dish. I followed the directs and even added some pepper jack cheese on top to give it a little pizazz, but it didn't work. We all choked it down but won't make it again. The only one who seemed to really like it was our 10 month old...but he is a carb fan and will eat anything!
Posted at 2:54 PM on February 19 2009 by Disappointing
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delicious!!
We loved this healthier version of a favorite food, we rarely have due to calories. Very tasty, and great leftover. I did add a small amt of grated Gruyere cheese I had left from an appetizer, that added a nice zip. I think the recipe is great just the way it is thought, with the suggested seasoning and dijon mustard. As my husband says when he likes something, "It's a keeper!!
Posted at 9:48 AM on January 26 2009 by flashrn
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Additional flavorings
My whole family loves homemade macaroni and cheese. One thing that I do add to it on occasion to give it a different flavor which is absolutely delicious is a few shakes of onion powder and dill weed to the flour for the sauce. I am a Weight Watchers member as well and I always use fat free milk and Cabot 75% reduced fat cheddar cheese; it is absolutely wonderful!
Posted at 9:48 AM on January 6 2009 by Boopsy
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Blegghh!
This dish looked SO great coming out of the oven, but it turned out very bland. It needs something else to give it actual flavor...
Posted at 12:49 PM on November 20 2008 by coconutsboston
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Best Homemade Mac & Cheese
I have tried several other mac & cheese recipes this one is by far the best. Everybody in my family loved it.
Posted at 9:42 AM on July 28 2008 by ATLANTIS
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I really like this recipe and make it regularly. I do add extra mustard and cayenne pepper to keep it interesting. I also use 50% light Cabot Cheddar which doesn't taste like low-fat cheese.
Posted at 8:06 AM on April 28 2008 by
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Not bad
I thought this mac and cheese was pretty good - mine did turn out a little gritty, but I've never been able to make homemade mac and cheese that hasn't. I added sauteed onions and fresh chopped tomatoes to mine to add a little freshness and color. My boyfriend loved it too!
Posted at 9:39 AM on April 2 2008 by stansey
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not too thrilled with this one...maybe because of using whole wheat noodles, but this ended up almost tastless to the family.
Posted at 9:22 AM on February 27 2008 by shellnscott
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Mac and cheese
I thought this was very easy to make. It was very creamy and quite good after baking. I didn't tell my family it was reduced fat cheese and they couldn't tell the difference. I did omit the cayenne pepper however. This one was a keeper.
Posted at 9:43 AM on January 14 2008 by Susan