Monday, July 20, 2009

Classic Mac n Cheese w/vegetables(stove top version)

SAY CHEEEEEEEEEEESE TO THE HEALTH OF IT!!
C
heese's high nutritional value and its beneficial roles in health make this food an important dairy food to include in a healthful diet. Cheese contains a high concentration of essential nutrients, in particular high quality protein and calcium, as well as other nutrients such as phosphorus, zinc, vitamin A, riboflavin, and vitamin B12.
In addition to its nutritional contribution to the diet, cheese has several health attributes. Certain cheeses such as Cheddar, Swiss, blue, Monterey Jack, and process American cheese, among others, have been demonstrated to reduce the risk of dental caries.
Consuming cheese may stimulate the flow of saliva, which has caries reducing properties. Milk proteins in cheese have been demonstrated to neutralize plaque acids through their buffering capacity.To help reduce tooth decay, health professionals recommend eating cheese immediately after meals, or as a between-meal snack. other health benfits includes improving bone health, reducing high blood pressure and managing weight.
Many cheeses, particularly aged cheeses such as Cheddar and Swiss, contain little or no lactose. For this reason, cheese is an important source of calcium and many other nutrients found in milk for lactose intolerant peoples. (facts source: National dairy council of America)
So give your family their daily servings of cheese. As cheese is also high in sodium and saturated fat, consume low fat cheese and always low sodium content cheese. AND Moderation is the Key.....you can enjoy everything but in moderate quantity.
I'll share with you a good way to serve kids Cheese....Kids' favorite Classic
Macaroni & Cheese or Mac' N Cheese with vegetable(stove top version-no eggs)
(the touch-up of garlic, hot sauce and mustard
take this supreme comfort food into another level)


Ingredients :
Elbow Macaroni : 1 pack
Carrot : 2(cubed)
Corn : 1/2 cup
Flour : 2 tblsp.
Milk : 2/3 cup
Cheddar cheese(I used white cheddar) : 1 cup(shredded)
Butter : 2 tblsp.
Garlic : 4 pods(chopped finely)
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Hot sauce like Tabasco: 2 tsp. (as per taste)
Dijon Mustard : 1 tblsp. (optional)

Method :
  • In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook macaroni or any kind of swirly pasta until done, not mushy but little softer than we do for other pasta dishes. Drain and keep aside.
  • In a large pan, melt butter, add cubed carrots, fry until done, add corn, fry adding little salt. Keep aside. In the same pan, add chopped garlic, stir fry for a minute or two, then add flour, mix in the butter. Then pour the milk over. Let it cook for 2 minutes.
  • Then add shredded cheese and combine with the milk. Over low heat continue to stir for 3 minutes until sauce thickened. Now add drained pasta and cooked vegetables. Combine with the sauce. Add hot sauce according to your tolerance(if cooking for kids, omit hot sauce), mustard, salt and pepper according to your taste.
This nutritious creamy dish can make any kid
(even adults) happy with no failure. So sending this to CFK:Healthy Lunch-boxes, where Neha of Tasty Recipes is the host for this month, event started by Sharmi of Neivedyam



4 comments:

Lakshmi said...

Lovely! I would love to take that for my lunch box :D

Cilantro said...

Good info on cheese. My daughters favorite. She would love to have them any day.

chef and her kitchen said...

Lovely..Love to grab that bowl...nice info on cheese..

Hari Chandana P said...

Wow... nice recipe... lovely presentation... thanks for sharing!!


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