Baked Mac & Cheese

This is a simple Mac & Cheese recipe I found in the November 2011 Issue of Cooking Light.  It's really simple, and it tastes delicious!  So let's get started!

Start out with a giant pot of water-- and a 12oz box of Penne noodles (we use whole wheat everything at our house) and cook the noodles according to the recipe on the package.  While the noodles cook-- grab your other ingredients:

You'll need a 12oz package of low-fat cottage cheese, shredded sharp cheddar and Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper, panko bread crumbs and parsley (not pictured here).

Put your cottage cheese in a food  processor or a blender and blend until smooth.  Scoop the cottage cheese into a bowl. Add 1/2 cup of sharp cheddar, and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese and mix together.  Once mixed, add 1/8 teaspoon of salt and pepper and mix well.  By now, your noodles should be done.  Drain them and put them in a separate bowl.

Add cheese mixture to the noodles and mix well.  Then, put the noodles in an 11x17 baking dish, greased.  Then take 1/4 cup of grated parmesean cheese, 3 tablespoons of panko bread crumbs, and 1 tablespoon of parsley and mix.  Sprinkle the mixture on top of the mac and cheese and stick it in the oven.  Bake at 375-degrees for 10 minutes.

Then preheat the broiler and broil pasta for 1 minute or until the top is brown.  Now, this recipe comes with a fabulous Spinach salad with a homemade vinaigrette.

The recipe calls for 8 cups of baby spinach, 2 cups of halved cherry tomates and 3/4 cup of red onions.  We don't like tomatoes at my house, so I omitted them and added carrots, broccoli and raddishes.  Next, grab the ingredients for the vinaigrette:  Take 1/4 cup of white wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of oregano, 1/8 teaspoon of salt and pepper.  Combine in a bowl and whisk together.  Then drizzle over the salad and toss.

And you're done!  It's delicious, filling and it only takes 40 minutes to make!  Yummo!