Macaroni Cheese Recipe with Hidden Vegetables for Children
Posted by EYR Team on 11th Mar 2019
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Promote healthy eating in your setting this National Vegetarian Week and introduce the little ones to exciting new food! This year, Vegetarian Week is taking place to highlight the benefits of meat-free meals. It’s extremely important to make sure that children have a well-balanced and nutritious diet to shape healthy eating habits from an early age, so why not try some healthy and tasty veggie dishes!
We all know how fussy children can be when it comes to food – but here we offer the perfect solution! This delicious vegetarian Hidden Vegetable Macaroni Cheese looks exactly the same as a regular macaroni cheese, but with three healthy portions of vegetables hidden within – a fantastic way to get more vegetables into the children’s diet without the groans and grumbles!
So how do you make this tasty delight? Just follow this simple recipe below.
Hidden Vegetable Macaroni Cheese Recipe - Cauliflower, Sweet Potato & Butternut Squash
(Serves: 4)
Ingredients:
- 1 medium sweet potato (around 200g), peeled and diced
- 200g chunk of butternut squash, peeled and diced
- 200g cauliflower, broken into smallish florets
- 25g butter
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 500ml milk
- 100g cheddar cheese
- 200g macaroni or other pasta shape
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 50g breadcrumbs
Method:
- Place the vegetables together in a steamer and steam for 10-15 minutes until soft.
- Bring a large pan of boiling water to the boil, add the macaroni and cook for 10 minutes or so, until just soft. I don't usually salt the water when I'm cooking for the kids but feel free to if you want.
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (fan)/200°C/gas mark 6. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Stir through the flour and whisk in the milk. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and cook, stirring often, for around five minutes. Don't worry about the sauce thickening too much as you want it to be on the runny side for macaroni cheese.
- Remove from the heat and add the cheese. Stir until melted.
- Add the cooked vegetables to the sauce and blend until smooth.
- Add the cooked pasta and mix well. If you like you can serve it like this or if you prefer then transfer to an ovenproof dish, sprinkle over the breadcrumbs and grate a little more cheese over the top and cook in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes or until bubbling and the top is golden.
We would love to see your final production of this tasty Mac 'n' Cheese - so don't forget to share your Vegetarian Week photos with us on social media by tagging us or using the hashtag #ExploreWithEYR!
Looking for other ways to promote healthy eating in your setting? Explore our fantastic range of multi-cultural Play Food Sets.