Greek Macaroni-n-Cheese (And A Giveaway!) (CLOSED)
BlogHer recently contacted me with a mission--redo a classic recipe using Country Crock, but ramp up the vegetables so that the recipe meets the USDA recommendations for vegetables to take up half of your plate.
Now THAT is my kind of mission. I've spent the majority of the summer reveling in the joy that is the farmers market. We've been enjoying tons and tons of fresh eggplant, spinach, onions, zucchini . . . you name it. We're all about the vegetables these days.
The whole Vegetable-palooza was exactly why I hadn't made macaroni-n-cheese from scratch recently. As much as I love making it and as much as everyone loves eating it, the whole pasta-with-cheese thing wasn't really cutting it as a balanced meal. If there is one thing macaroni-n-cheese needs, it's vegetables.
Hello, Use More Veggies Mission! Meet my friend macaroni-n-cheese!
Of course, I couldn't just throw some broccoli in my standard macaroni-n-cheese recipe. That wouldn't be any fun. Instead, I decided to try making a Greek-influenced macaroni-n-cheese.
You guys.
YOU GUYS.
This stuff turned out AMAZING. It's packed with veggies and perfectly balanced with the right cheeses and OMG. SOOOO GOOD. My husband even admitted that it might be the best thing I've ever made up. I might be willing to admit that he was right.
It's a multi-step process, and worth every second of the effort. You'll make the macaroni, sauté the vegetables, and make the cheese sauce. Then you'll throw it all together and put it in the oven for a bit. I made enough to serve 6, which means we'll be reheating it for leftovers later in the week. You gotta love a dinner that gives twice.
Greek Macaroni-n-Cheese
For the pasta and vegetables you'll need:
2 cups macaroni
1 tablespoon Country Crock
1 small red onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 pound spinach
1/2 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
1 2.25 oz can sliced black olives
1 can quartered artichoke hearts
1/2 cup Feta cheese
Optional: sundried tomatoes
For the cheese sauce you'll need:
2 tablespoons Country Crock
1 teaspoon flour
2 cups nonfat milk
1 cup shredded Asiago cheese
1 cup shredded Provolone cheese
Start by cooking the macaroni according to the instructions on the box.
While you're waiting for your water to boil, melt 1 tablespoon of Country Crock in a skillet over medium heat. Add the red pepper, onion, and garlic and sauté until softened. Toss the spinach on top. Don't worry if it doesn't fit at first. The spinach will shrink. A LOT.
Stir occasionally until the spinach is sautéd. Add the tomatoes, olives, artichoke hearts, and sundried tomatoes (if you're using them). (I couldn't not use sundried tomatoes. They make my husband a very happy man.)
So much good stuff going on there.
By the time your veggies are sautéd, your macaroni is probably done. Drain it and then toss it in your skillet with the veggies. Stir it all up and set it aside while you make your cheese sauce.
Now for the sauce. Melt your 2 tablespoons of Country Crock in a saucepan (I used the same pan I used to cook the macaroni--I just wiped it dry with a towel) over medium heat. Slowly add the flour while stirring constantly with a whisk. Then slowly add the milk, all the while still stirring and stirring with that whisk.
Allow the milk and Country Crock concoction to gently boil until it begins to thicken slightly (about 5 minutes), stirring constantly. Then begin slowly adding your shredded Asiago and Provolone. Keep stirring with that whisk and you'll end up with a creamy cheese sauce.
It doesn't photograph well, but it tastes AMAZING.
Put your pasta with veggies in an oven safe dish then pour the cheese sauce over the top. Add a little bit of shredded Provolone or Asiago to the top if you want, but definitely be sure to add your feta to the top.
In a perfect world, the whole dish would go in the oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. I don't live in a perfect world, though, so I cheat. I turn the broiler on high and cook it until the cheese just starts to brown on top.
Nobody in my house has the patience to wait for anything to bake more than five minutes. It just is, so I use the broiler a lot. It seems to do the trick just fine.
What you end up with is a macaroni-n-cheese that tastes AMAZING and has a ton of vegetables in it.
And, as she said, "It's so yummy!"
Wait! There's more! Tell me what you think about this recipe, and you can win a $100.00 gift certificate from Cooking.com!
Rules:
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You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
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d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, or a new winner will be selected. The Official Rules are available here. More chances to win are available on the BlogHer.com Promotions and Prizes page. Enter between August 24th - September 30th.
Recipe
Reader Comments (341)
WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT?
This looks amazing. Using whole wheat pasta would make it even better!
Tweet!
http://twitter.com/#!/megrcam51
I love the black olives in the recipe!
tweet-http://twitter.com/#!/mami2jcn/status/106411695026601984
Mmmmm! Looks great!
Tweet Tweet!
http://twitter.com/scrumpydaddy/status/106417260444385280
Lordy, that looks good!
nix the sun dried tomatoes and i am all over this! crazy excited to try it. even pinned it...
What do I think? I think you are a mad kitchen genius.
so i sent a link on my twittah: http://twitter.com/#!/hellohahanarf/status/106420437214429184
I want this, minus the olives. You, my good madame, are amazing.
This fits in perfectly with my personal mission of trying to sneak as many veggies into my diet as I can! Thank you for picking such a delicious food to make healthier - can't wait to try it!!
Anything made with feta, tomatoes, black olives (I might substitute kalamata olives) is worth trying for me!
Great recipe.
Oh. My. Gosh... I am a mac n cheese obsessor... this is awesome... Going to try it- less the onions (allergy) as soon as humanly possible! yum.
That recipe is pure genius! My husband hates black olives but I want to leave them in and make him eat it anyway, looks so good!
blue65829 at aol dot com
This sounds AMAZING and I have a cookout to go to this weekend and I think that this will be my dish to pass :)
I'm not a fan of half the veggies in this, and I still think it looks amazing!
YES. I love mac and cheese but I have the problem with the lack of veggies. Must try.
Healthy mac-and-chesse? COUNT ME IN!!!!
This sounds FANTABULOUS! I love Greek food and I love Macaroni & Cheese .... what's NOT to link about this?!
Dara Nix
kitty32504 at cox dot net
Tweet: https://twitter.com/#!/Kitty32504/status/106442560209289216
I think that looks great and I am going to make it soon.
i agree about the sundried tomatoes. YUM! Totally making this next Monday for meatless Mondays. Thanks!
Yum! I'm totally pinning this to try.
I don't know how. I must be stoooopid. I tweeted it, but can't figure out how to get the url for just my one tweet, and not the whole page. http://twitter.com/#!/sleepgh
Yes please--looks amazing- I've started using half whole wheat pasta and half regular pasta--I'm weaning my family on to whole wheat pasta.
kakihararocks@gmail.com
Genious! Love the interesting cheeses, instead of your standard cheddar! :)
I really like this recipe! Completely different than what I usually cook and look delicious!
lisalmg25 at gmail dot com
I Tweeted this giveaway: http://twitter.com/#!/lisalmg/status/106458704441901056
lisalmg25 at gmail dot com
What do I think? I think I'd like this in mah tummy!
Yum. I may need to rethink my plan not to go to the farmers market this week...
oh I love to cook and bake!!
I'm not a fan of half the veggies in this, but my husband would LOVE it! Now I'm wondering what else I could throw in mac n cheese?
I think it looks delicious! My family would probably say yuck.
That looks amazing, and all ingredients I love.
This looks delicious. I'm a sucker for mac n cheese and all of it's variations. I have got to try this.
Thanks for the giveaway!
eswright18 at gmail dot com
Tweet
https://twitter.com/#!/eswright18/status/106491259186720768
i can't wait to try this recipe this weekend, it looks amazing
I like to come up with new recipes too and I can;t wait to try yours out. It sounds so good, and the addition of artichoke choke hearts beyond wondeful.
gabe411 at hotmail dot com
I think it looks like the best mac and cheese recipe I've ever seen, and I'm amazed the little one liked it. We WILL be trying it out in our home.
tweet
http://twitter.com/#!/mail4rosey/status/106514987454959617
That looks amazing!
This really looks delicious. I might even be able to get my kids to eat some veggies with this recipe.
Thanks for sharing and thanks for this giveaway.
rickpeggysmith(at)aol(dot)com
I tweeted:
http://twitter.com/#!/peg42/status/106532543897145344
Thanks
rickpeggysmith(at)aol(dot)com
This sounds and looks really good have to try this one thank you so much always looking for new recipes!
tishajean@ charter.net
Tweeted too
https://twitter.com/#!/latishajean/status/106523398678646784
tishajean@ charter.net
Hmm... what do I think about this recipe? Well I would be crazy not to like this! I mean, it has all the major food groups... macaroni, three kinds of cheese and yum. Definitely a winner! Thank you so much for sharing, and for offering such a generous giveaway. :)
Tweeted!
https://twitter.com/#!/normawatson/status/106555997442678785
This sounds SO. FREAKING. AMAZING!
And pretty easy too - can't wait to try it!