Weight Watchers Baked Mac and Cheese

This 5-point Weight Watchers Baked Mac and Cheese is creamy, tacky, and so comforting. 

The bottom of this recipe makes use of whole-grain pasta, which is decrease in factors than common pasta. Simply that small change alone makes a distinction, however the kind of dairy used performs a greatest half. Though I sometimes shrink back from Velveeta, it isn’t too many factors once you use the reduced-fat model and use it carefully. This recipe solely makes use of 2.5 oz for the entire dish. Pair that Velveeta with some milk, mozzarella, and cheddar, and also you’re in for an expensive cheese sauce.

This baked mac and cheese contains a crunchy topping, because the cheese on high is broiled with panko breadcrumbs, leading to a pleasant textural distinction. The golden-brown topping additionally takes its presentation up a notch. If you take this mac and cheese out of the oven, it’ll be arduous to not dig into it immediately. If you wish to make your mac and cheese meal much more memorable, you’ll be able to serve it with different comforting meals, reminiscent of mashed potatoes, baked rooster, or collard greens. I’ve a side dish recipe collection you’ll be able to take a look at for some concepts, too!

Why You Ought to Strive This Recipe

• Excellent for weeknights or gatherings. This recipe is simple sufficient for a weeknight dinner however spectacular sufficient to serve for nicer events.
• It’s low in fats. With a mix of diminished fats and decrease fats merchandise, this recipe is way more healthy than the common mac and cheese.
• Simply adjustable. If you want to serve 10 individuals, all you need to do is double it and use a bigger dish! You can too modify the pasta form, cheese kind, or milk kind.

Recipe Overview

• Serving Measurement: about 1 cup (124g)
• Variety of Servings: 5
• Time to Prepare dinner: 40 minutes
• WW Factors Per Recipe: 5 WW factors per serving, 27 for the whole recipe (Click here to view the recipe within the WW app. WW login is required)

Elements in WW Baked Mac and Cheese

• 8 oz Complete-grain penne (or one other whole-grain pasta form)
• ¾ cup Fats-free milk or unsweetened almond milk
• 1 tbsp Mild butter substitute
• 2.5 oz Diminished-fat Velveeta cheese
• ½ cup Fats-free shredded cheddar cheese
• ½ cup Fats-free shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 tsp Kosher salt, or to style
• ¼ tsp Black pepper
• ½ tsp Onion powder
• ½ tsp Garlic powder
• ¼ tsp Cayenne pepper
• 1 pinch Nutmeg
• ¼ tsp Dried mustard
• 3 tbsp Panko breadcrumbs

Directions for making Baked Mac and Cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a baking dish about 8×8 or an identical measurement. Combine the 2 shredded cheeses collectively to create a mix and put aside.
2. In a big saucepan or skillet, add milk, butter substitute, seasonings, and Velveeta cheese. Prepare dinner over medium warmth till gently simmering, the Velveeta has melted, and the sauce is easy. It would appear skinny.
3. In the meantime, boil the pasta to al dente based on bundle directions.
4. To the cheese sauce, stir in about 1/2 of the shredded cheese; cease mixing as soon as it simply melts. Don’t overmix as a result of it would clump. Take away from warmth.
5. Drain the pasta and add it to the cheese sauce; gently combine collectively. (If you want, you’ll be able to add a splash or two of pasta water to the sauce).
6. Pour half of the tacky pasta into the baking dish. Sprinkle with a lot of the remaining cheese, leaving some for the highest.

7. Pour the remaining pasta over the layer of shredded cheese.

8. Prime with remaining cheese and panko bread crumbs. 

9. Cowl and bake mac and cheese for 20-25 minutes or till totally sizzling and cheese is melted within the heart. Put the broiler on low for the previous couple of minutes to brown the cheese and breadcrumbs on high.

Variations and Substitutions

• Baked Broccoli Mac and Cheese: I counsel blanching the broccoli and utilizing smaller florets. Then, combine it into the mac and cheese simply earlier than baking. This may stop broccoli from being undercooked because the mac and cheese doesn’t take lengthy to bake.
• Milk Kind: Be happy to make use of unsweetened almond milk and even 2% milk. You can too make baked mac and cheese with evaporated milk. There are fat-free evaporated milk cans on the market; use the identical quantity of milk because the recipe requires.
• Baked Mac and Cheese with Cream Cheese: Add about 1-2 oz of lower-fat cream cheese to the sauce. You possibly can combine it in if you find yourself melting the Velveeta. This may make the sauce further creamy!
• Different Add-In Concepts: You can too add bacon bits, chopped jalapenos, bell peppers, caramelized onions, or shredded rooster. If including a whole lot of mix-ins or including shredded meat, I counsel rising the sauce barely.

Suggestions and Tips for Making Weight Watchers Baked Mac and Cheese

• Find out how to retailer further WW Mac and Cheese: switch any leftovers to an hermetic container or cowl them with foil/plastic wrap. Hold them within the fridge for 3-4 days.
• Find out how to reheat the leftovers: When reheating the mac and cheese, I counsel including a splash or two of milk and a few further shredded cheese. This may refresh its texture.
• You should use any mixture of fat-free shredded cheeses that you just like. I personally love half mozzarella and half cheddar, however you should use all cheddar if you’d like.
• I counsel not omitting the Velveeta, because it thickens the sauce and provides creaminess. It binds the opposite cheeses with the milk, eliminating the necessity for a roux.
• Watch out to not over-bake it, as it would dry out the mac and cheese.
• Don’t undercook the pasta when boiling it; undercooked pasta will take in the entire sauce.
• Begin with half the salt if you’d like. The sauce could style barely salty earlier than mixing with pasta and baking, however after baking, all the things melds, and it’s now not salty.

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