Mac and cheese is a classic Thanksgiving and every holiday side dish, let’s be honest. I wanted to make a mac and cheese recipe that has significantly less sodium and less fat and cholesterol too but without losing that nostalgic flavor and texture we all love.

I took it one step farther and used protein pasta so that it fills you up even more! Barilla is my favorite protein pasta I’ve tried!

These spiral noods work great for Mac and cheese with the ridges because it holds that cheesy orange sauce perfectly.

I use my own shredded cheese for this mac and cheese because I’ve never seen shredded Swiss but also because it melts much better when you shred yourself. And Swiss is one of the cheeses that has the least amount of sodium per serving. And let me highly recommend this cheese grater from amazon because it makes shredding cheese such a breeze! The silver bowl comes in a set and is also from Amazon, as the rest of the products I use too.

It’s important to collect all of your ingredients and prepare them so they are ready to go before you start cooking so you’re not running around the kitchen losing your place and accidentally burning your Mac and cheese sauce. I love these clear organizers that come in a set, the big one in my cabinet has all my spices and seasonings but then I have the little one filled with all of my main ones like garlic powder, onion powder and mushroom powder so I can just grab and go when cooking.

Measure all of your ingredients ahead of time too to make this Mac and cheese easy to put together. I love to use these ramekins to help.

Also, it’s a pro move to put your olive oil in a condiment bottle so you can easily drizzle oil because I don’t know about you, but I get heavy handed by accident with the spouts that those olive oil bottles come in.

I use no salt added chicken stock but feel free to use the unsalted vegetable broth because that’s delicious too. The pink measuring cup comes in a set of 3.

You certainly don’t have to use a Ninja Blender for this recipe but it makes it easier and hides the vegetables more. If you don’t have one, just dice the onion and pepper smaller and make sure to whisk the rest of your liquid ingredients together with the pumpkin before adding to your roux.

I like to use my homemade non dairy milk in this recipe because it reduces the sodium and cholesterol and gives some healthy fat and nutrients too. But you can certainly use any milk of your choosing. If you are using store bought non dairy milk, make sure you get the plain unsweetened kind. The beaker is my favorite measuring utensil because it makes me feel like a scientist.

Be sure to watch my video for more tips and fun too! The pink serving spoon and ceramic casserole dish are also from Amazon.

This whole 13×9 casserole is only 1200 mg of sodium which probably feeds about 10-12 people so we’re talking like 100-120mg of sodium per serving!

Ingredients:

• Barilla Protein Pasta (cellentani or cavatappi)

• 1 white onion, roughly chopped
• 1 orange pepper, roughly chopped
• 1 can (15oz) 100% pumpkin purée
• 1 cup unsalted chicken stock
• 2 cups Non dairy milk
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 tsp each garlic powder, onion powder, mushroom powder, black pepper, paprika
• 4oz cream cheese
• 8oz shredded Swiss cheese
• One sleeve of hint of salt ritz (30 crackers)
• 3-4 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan (I like belgioso)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F
2. Sauté onion and pepper in a little olive oil
3. Boil noodles until just al dente
4. Blend the sautéed onion and pepper with the chicken stock, pumpkin and milk and set aside
5. In the same pot that you sautéed the onion and pepper, add the unsalted butter and once melted add the flour and whisk for one minute
6. Then slowly add the liquid mixture you blended and whisk together, bring to a boil and then turn down to the heat
7. Add the cream cheese and spices and mix until melted
8. Turn off the heat and add the Swiss cheese a little at a time until melted
9. Add the cooked and drained noodles, mix and then add to a 13×9
10. Add crushed crackers and Parmesan on top
11. Bake 20 minutes or so until bubbly around the sides and brown on top
12. Enjoy!

What’s your favorite Thanksgiving side dish? I’m also very fond of green bean casserole but even though I’ve made it lower sodium with no salt added green beans and non dairy milk, it’s hard to get away from those fried onions!

I hope you have a super awesome Thanksgiving and holiday with your friends and family! Be sure to share your Thanksgiving plates with me on my social media because I love to see them!

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