Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese

I'll get to this weekend (and our 20 mile run) later. I wanted to start today off with my new favorite macaroni and cheese recipe. It's inspired by Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious cookbook -- she added cauliflower puree to make the kid-favorite healthier. We went a step further, using whole wheat pastry flour, garbanzo puree (instead of cream cheese), and pumpkin instead of cauliflower.

Makes this cheesy dish a little more grown up. Also adds some wonderful nutrition, cuts down on the fat, and keeps in the fridge really well . . . to use for lunch, perhaps?

(That is, is you have any left -- and we sure didn't!)


Anyway, I've written about my love for Lean Cuisine macaroni and cheese before -- ick, right? -- but I'm happy to declare before you all that I won't be eating that packaged crap anymore.

Plus, this recipe's so easy -- you can memorize it!


PUMPKIN MAC 'N CHEESE

What you'll need . . .

• 1-1/2 cups elbow macaroni
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup almond milk (or skim milk)
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (unsweetened)
• 1-1/2 cups shredded low-fat cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup pureed garbanzo beans
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Method . . .

1. Cook the pasta to the package directions.
2. While you wait for it to finish: Spray the inside of a large sauce-pot with the cooking spray. Pour in the olive oil and cook over medium heat. Then stir in the wheat pastry flour and keep stirring until the mixture is thick -- but not browned. (About 1 minute)
3. Add the milk and stir constantly for between 2 and 3 minutes. Until thick.
4. Add the pumpkin puree, cheese, and pureed garbanzo beans (to puree, just rise a can garbanzos, put in a food processor with a couple tablespoons water, pulse until smooth -- like hummus), paprika, and pepper. Stir until everything is melted. Add more seasonings to taste.
5. When you pasta is done, just drain and add to the cheese mixture. Stir for a minute or two, then turn off the heat and serve.
6. I added some whole wheat breadcrumbs to mine.

We served ours with a gigantic bowl of veggie chili soup (because it's more like a soup, but with all the chili ingredients -- recipe later in the week) and a cold beer. The pasta we used? Barilla PLUS -- great tasting, but with "all the protein, omega-3s, and fiber you need."



Have you ever tinkered with a favorite recipe to make it healthier? Were you satisfied with the result? Sometimes we are, sometimes we aren't. There are definitely cookie recipes, for example, that we'd rather keep original -- full of sugar and fat. However, this healthy twist on mac 'n cheese is here to stay!

ALSO: Don't forget to enter our Operation Beautiful Giveaway. That's right! We're giving away a copy of Caitlin Boyle's new book -- enter by Friday, September 3rd at 9PM EST for your chance to win!

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Chocolate Chunk & Banana Cookies

OK. So, I lied. There's more than meets the eye (and taste buds) with these chocolate-banana chippers. But before you click the X at the top of your screen, I beg you to keep reading. The base recipe for these cookies comes from Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious cookbook. I've read the good, bad, and often ugly reviews, but when I found a copy for a mere $3 at a local discount store, it was too much of a steal for this cookbook addict to pass by. Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Foods. In this event, I was the "kid" we were so eagerly trying to have eat more healthful foods. (I tend to be a bit of a sweet tooth, and those of you coming to us from METHOD know this reality quite well.)

One night I opened the pretty pink book and started reading. First thoughts: I wasn't really shocked by the idea to incorpore vegetable purees into my meals -- I've been doing that for quite a while in fact. When you're vegan, especially, you find yourself putting all kinds of purees (and other strange ingredients) into baked goods to substitute for eggs, milk, etc. Unimpressed, I continued on to the dessert section. Then I found it. The page with those infamous CHICKPEA chocolate chip cookies. And you don't mash up the little buggers, you add them right into the batter like so many walnuts.

I just had to try it out.

But I didn't have eggs. Or applesauce (which is my favorite substitute). However, I did have two ridiculously ripe bananas sitting in my line of sight. CHICKPEA and BANANA cookies? I don't know . . . Oh, why not?! I sent Stephen to the corner pharmacy to pick up some chocolate chips (CVS is our favorite "emergency foods" store) and got to work on the dough.

Here's the recipe. I'll continue below with my comments.

What you'll need . . .

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar (I used dark)
• 3/4 cup trans-fat free soft tub margarine spread (I used Earth Balance)
• 2 large egg whites (I used 2 medium, very ripe bananas)
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• (15 - ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed. NOTE: She does not instruct to mash them.
• 2 Cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips (Stephen's trip to CVS only yielded some Halloween-sized chocolate bars I used my food processor to "chunk" -- either way, just add some chocolate. You're going to need it.)
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
• 3/4 cups raisins (optional -- but YUCK! REALLY?!)
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (I used 1/2 cup wheat pastry, 1/2 cup all-purpose)
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Method . . .

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the sugar and margarine with a wooden spoon or on medium speed until smooth.
3. Beat in the egg whites (bananas) and vanilla.
4. Add the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt, chocolate chips, CHICKPEAS, walnuts, and raisins (if wanted), and mix on a low speed until a thing dough forms.
5. Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto the baking sheet, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart.
6. Press gently with a fork to flatten.
7. Bake until the cookies are golden brown and just set, 11 to 13 minutes; do not over bake.
8. Transfer to a rack to cool.

Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. However, our batch didn't last that long.

Personally, I hated these cookies more than anything I've ever baked in my entire life. And this includes several failed attempts at vegan brownies that turned into an oily goo in the oven. What makes them so bad, you ask? Well, as much as I tried to ignore the chickpeas, their texture and taste simply didn't allow me to forget them. They don't really transform in the baking process. Maybe dry out a bit, but they remain that familiar chickpea from salads and such. The rest of the cookie, though, wasn't too bad. I'd try them again -- maybe -- sans legumes.

Stephen's take? He LOVED them. Everything about them. He ate them all in two days and has since begged me to make them again. We'll see about that.

Final verdict? Give 'em a try. At very least you'll have an interesting story to tell you friends & family. And I've read that kids really don't notice if you don't tell them what's in it.

Like what you just read? You can subscribe to the feed of these posts and be the first to know what the (never home)makers are up to. And we’ll love you forever <3

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