Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Here's a relatively low-sodium macaroni and cheese recipe. Please note that this recipe is NOT low-fat; I don't know of any way to make mac-n-cheese that is low-fat, low-sodium, and tasty all at once; at most, you can get two of those together. This one is low-sodium and tasty. There are footnotes telling you where some of the ingredients are available.
Macaroni Quattro Formaggio
Cook 12 ounces of elbow macaroni or other small-to-medium pasta (tiny shells, rotini, radiatore, etc.) according to directions on package.
Grate an 8 ounce bar of low-sodium cheddar cheese(1). Dice up 4 ounces of FRESH mozzarella cheese(2). (If you have an ounce or so of leftover swiss(3) (gruyere, emmenthaler) cheese, you can grate that and add it too.) Mix these cheeses with the macaroni, and place in a casserole dish. Over the top of the macaroni, sprinkle about 2 ounces of grated Parmesan and Romano cheese(4), then on top of that, about 2 ounces (1/4 cup) of low-sodium seasoned dry bread crumbs(5), spreading the Parmesan/Romano and the crumbs as evenly as possibly across the whole top of the casserole. Then slice up 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter, and dot the top of the casserole with little chunks of butter. Over the whole thing, pour a can of evaporated milk - depending on where you live, that's somewhere around 8 to 12 liquid ounces; the exact amount isn't critical as long as it's at least 1 cup and not more than about a cup and a half. Place the dish, uncovered, in a 350°F oven, for 25 minutes, then switch the oven to BROIL and 400°F for 3 minutes, to brown the crumbs on top. Let the dish cool for about 5 minutes before serving.Serves 4 to 6 people as a main course, depending on the people.
To fancy it up some, drain a can of no-salt-added diced stewed tomatoes, and add them in when you are first mixing the macaroni with the cheddar and mozzarella.
The leftovers are extremely tasty cold, too; it can be served as slices, along with a salad.
(1) Heluva Good makes low-sodium cheddar; if you can't get your local supermarket to order some, you can order directly from the company. You'd better like cheese though, since it's a minimum of 4 bars.
(2) Most larger supermarkets will carry a national brand of fresh mozzarella, such as Bel Giorno, which has about 70 mg of sodium per ounce. Fresh mozzarella comes in round balls floating in liquid, by the way. If you can find some from a local dairy, though, those fresh mozzarellas often have as little as 15 mg of sodium per ounce. High-end markets such as Whole Foods, Central Market, etc. will usually have local-dairy mozzarella in their cheese assortments.
(3) Swiss cheeses vary greatly in their sodium, so you have to check the labels, but there are quite a few brands that run only 50-75 mg of sodium per ounce, including the house brand from Giant, and the commonly available Alpine Lace brand.
(4) Parmesan and Romano, or any grated cheese intended for spaghetti, can vary widely in sodium, too. This will be the highest in sodium of the cheeses in this recipe. But you can find one that has 75-100 mg of sodium per serving compared to others that have 150-180 mg of sodium per serving, and that's what to look for.
(5) Healthy Heart Market, see the link at right, carries low-so bread crumbs. They also have the canned no-salt added tomatoes, if you decide to add those.
Macaroni Quattro Formaggio
Cook 12 ounces of elbow macaroni or other small-to-medium pasta (tiny shells, rotini, radiatore, etc.) according to directions on package.
Grate an 8 ounce bar of low-sodium cheddar cheese(1). Dice up 4 ounces of FRESH mozzarella cheese(2). (If you have an ounce or so of leftover swiss(3) (gruyere, emmenthaler) cheese, you can grate that and add it too.) Mix these cheeses with the macaroni, and place in a casserole dish. Over the top of the macaroni, sprinkle about 2 ounces of grated Parmesan and Romano cheese(4), then on top of that, about 2 ounces (1/4 cup) of low-sodium seasoned dry bread crumbs(5), spreading the Parmesan/Romano and the crumbs as evenly as possibly across the whole top of the casserole. Then slice up 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter, and dot the top of the casserole with little chunks of butter. Over the whole thing, pour a can of evaporated milk - depending on where you live, that's somewhere around 8 to 12 liquid ounces; the exact amount isn't critical as long as it's at least 1 cup and not more than about a cup and a half. Place the dish, uncovered, in a 350°F oven, for 25 minutes, then switch the oven to BROIL and 400°F for 3 minutes, to brown the crumbs on top. Let the dish cool for about 5 minutes before serving.Serves 4 to 6 people as a main course, depending on the people.
To fancy it up some, drain a can of no-salt-added diced stewed tomatoes, and add them in when you are first mixing the macaroni with the cheddar and mozzarella.
The leftovers are extremely tasty cold, too; it can be served as slices, along with a salad.
(1) Heluva Good makes low-sodium cheddar; if you can't get your local supermarket to order some, you can order directly from the company. You'd better like cheese though, since it's a minimum of 4 bars.
(2) Most larger supermarkets will carry a national brand of fresh mozzarella, such as Bel Giorno, which has about 70 mg of sodium per ounce. Fresh mozzarella comes in round balls floating in liquid, by the way. If you can find some from a local dairy, though, those fresh mozzarellas often have as little as 15 mg of sodium per ounce. High-end markets such as Whole Foods, Central Market, etc. will usually have local-dairy mozzarella in their cheese assortments.
(3) Swiss cheeses vary greatly in their sodium, so you have to check the labels, but there are quite a few brands that run only 50-75 mg of sodium per ounce, including the house brand from Giant, and the commonly available Alpine Lace brand.
(4) Parmesan and Romano, or any grated cheese intended for spaghetti, can vary widely in sodium, too. This will be the highest in sodium of the cheeses in this recipe. But you can find one that has 75-100 mg of sodium per serving compared to others that have 150-180 mg of sodium per serving, and that's what to look for.
(5) Healthy Heart Market, see the link at right, carries low-so bread crumbs. They also have the canned no-salt added tomatoes, if you decide to add those.
