Make Mac and Cheese Even Healthier!
When I saw that Target has a “Weekly Wow” deal on Kraft Cheese this week (sorry, the deal is expired!), I nearly did a happy dance right in the cooler section. I mean, with my three kids under the age of 7, cheese is a VERY important food group. (Ahem… okay, so it’s pretty important to their mama, too.) So what to do with all this amazing CHEESE?! Make the ultimate kid-favorite, of course. MAC and CHEESE! But wait… I thought given the season, it’d be fun to add a little more nutrition and flavor with some pumpkin, too. Check it out…
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Kraft. All opinions are authentic and my own. Please see my disclosure policy.
EASY One Pot Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
Ingredients:
- 1 (14.5 oz.) box of uncooked elbow macaroni (I used a high protein brand.)
- 1 package (2 cups) Kraft Finely Shredded Triple Cheddar Cheese
- 1/2 package (1 cup) Kraft Finely Shredded Colby and Monterrey Jack Cheese
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 cup milk
- a couple pats of butter
Steps:
First, cook that pasta up til al dente in some boiling water.
Then drain it and put it right back in the same pot (remember… one pot!). While it’s still good and hot (but not on the heat), stir in the shredded cheese, pumpkin, butter, and milk. Stir, stir, stir!
The heat of the pasta will melt the cheese, butter, and combine the ingredients into a yummy (pumpkin) cheese sauce. Sprinkle on some salt and pepper and serve it right out of the pot.
Or put it in a pretty serving dish to dress it up for company.
OR make it extra festive for Halloween by using some bell pepper and a pretzel stick to transform the kids serving into a silly Jack-O-Lantern. See, I told you it was EASY! And my kids had NO idea about the “secret” ingredient (the pumpkin!) until after they ate. YUM!
Tiffani says
Have you tried doing this in a crockpot? I’m curious how long you’d have to cook it? 4 hours on low?
Krissy @ B-Inspired Mama says
I haven’t tried. Definitely no longer than that, or I think the pasta would get mooshy. Let me know if you try it!
ann G. says
I didn’t have pumpkin so added pureed acorn squash. This was good as well.
Krissy @ B-Inspired Mama says
Oh good to know! Thanks for sharing. 🙂