Meatless Mondays – Macaroni and Cheese Vegetable Casserole
This morning as I sit and write this post, my mind is wandering to the growing list of things I should be doing and the shrinking list of the things I want to do. I’m okay with this. Laundry can wait, the house cleaning can wait a bit longer, and redundant chore of decluttering definitely is going to wait. Instead, I am concentrating on enjoying this last week of “brain rest” with finishing up my office/craft room makeover, binge-watching TV shows on Netflix, and some much overdue reading. Okay, I may do the laundry but no other work.
Even meals are going to be simpler this week, like this Macaroni and Cheese Vegetable Casserole. It’s full of cheesy-goodness and vegetables. I’ve adapted the original recipe a bit to suit what I had on hand and our tastes and we loved it. This is perfect for Meatless Mondays or when you want a main dish that isn’t going to take long to prepare. I even managed to make this in one pot – less dishes to wash – bonus!
Ingredients
- 1 lb elbow macaroni
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp flour
- 1 small onion diced finely
- 2 cloves garlic minced finely
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup half and half
- dash or two of hot sauce
- 2 cups broccoli florets fresh and uncooked
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 pint grape tomatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 13 x 9 inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain and keep warm. While pasta is cooking, cut the grape tomatoes in half, if desired.
- Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat; add onion and garlic, cook till soft (a couple of minutes).
- Whisk in flour, and cook 1 minute.
- Gradually whisk in milk and half and half and cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 to 5 minutes or until thickened. Mix in the dash or two of hot sauce.
- Stir in both cheeses, salt and pepper and stir until cheeses have melted and mixture is smooth.
- Add the broccili, pasta, and tomatoes and gently stir into the cheese mixture.
- Pour mixture into prepared 13 x 9 inch baking dish and bake 25 to 30 minutes or until the broccoli is cooked through and the top is golden brown.
- Recipe adapted from It's a Lovely Life!
Nutritional Disclaimer
“Blogghetti” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Enjoy!
This Macaroni and cheese veggie casserole sounds delicious. Will be pinning this. Thank you for sharing!