Recipe Rescue: Chili Mac & Cheese

by The Meal Makeover Moms on May 4th, 2009

sandy chili mac & cheese photoEvery month, we take a recipe from one of our blog readers and give it a healthy makeover. In April, we teamed up with Sahar, host of Fat Fighter TV, and offered to do the same for one of her readers. We had plenty of recipes to choose from — everything from Philly cheese steak and chocolate chip cookies to chicken enchiladas and cherry dump cake!

Ultimately, we chose a recipe for Chili Con Queso Mac ‘n Cheese, sent by Sandy, a mom of five from Arizona. Sandy got the recipe from Rachael Ray (not personally, of course)! “The original was greasy, and although very yummy, there was that ‘ugghh my stomach hurts from the grease and the fat’ afterwards. Even though it tasted good, it was just not healthy and I wanted to cut down the calories.”

Given that the original recipe served 4 and called for a pound of pasta, 3 cups of full-fat cheese, whole milk, butter, and leftover chili AND had nearly 1,000 calories and 24 grams of saturated fat (more than most people should eat in a day), we certainly understood where Sandy was coming from.

chili-mac-ingredients

For the Recipe Rescue, we made a bunch of ingredient switches — white pasta to a whole wheat blend, whole milk to 1%, butter to canola oil, and full-fat cheese to reduced fat.  We also reined in the portion size so it served 6 to 8 versus just 4, and we used a can of vegetarian chili for ease and convenience.

“My family all liked it. I hid the box of pasta before serving because we have had bad experiences with the healthier pasta. The whole wheat has a different flavor and doesn’t always taste good.” That said, Sandy and her family liked the whole wheat blend. “The pasta was delicious because it was covered up …you couldn’t tell it was the healthier pasta.”

In the end, we transformed Sandy’s Rachael Ray, stick-to-your waistline recipe into something a lot lighter with less than half the original calories and significantly less fat.

chili-mac-cooked-in-pan

Chili Mac & Cheese
Makes 6 to 8 Servings

  • One 14.5-ounce box dried whole wheat blend rotini pasta
  • 3 tablespoons canola oil
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 ½ cups 1% lowfat milk
  • 3 cups reduced fat shredded yellow cheddar cheese, divided
  • Kosher salt to taste
  • One 15-ounce can vegetarian chili (Amy’s or Health Valley), or 2 cups leftover chili

1. In a large saucepan, cook the pasta according to package directions.  Drain and set aside.

2. While the pasta is cooking, in a separate medium or large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk to combine. Gently cook, whisking frequently, until the mixture is smooth and the flour has had a chance to cook, about 1 minute.

3. Add the milk, raise the heat, and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat and continue to simmer and stir gently until the mixture thickens slightly, about 2 minutes.. Preheat the broiler on high or the oven at 400F.

4. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir 2 cups of the cheese into the thickened milk. Add the chili and stir to combine.  Add salt to taste. Stir in the cooked pasta until coated with the cheese sauce.

5. Transfer to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish and top with the remaining 1 cup of cheese. Place the baking dish under the broiler and brown the cheese on top or place in the oven for a few minutes until the cheese melts.

Nutrition Information per Serving:   470 calories, 16g fat (6g saturated, 0.8g omega-3), 380mg sodium, 56g carbohydrate, 7g fiber, 31g protein, 30% vitamin A, 50% calcium

Sandy says eating meals together as a family is a huge priority.  “We eat a lot of homemade food.  My husband works from home and everyone is on an odd schedule here due to school, work, and activities, but I insist on everyone getting together for dinner.”

From now on, she plans to read labels more and make the switch to healthier foods like whole wheat blend pasta.

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11 Comments | Filed Under Beans, Dinner, Pasta, RecipeRescue 

11 Responses to “Recipe Rescue: Chili Mac & Cheese”

  1. diane newell on May 4th, 2009

    My kids love mac and cheese, I’m trying this for dinner tonight! Thanks for all the great recipes…

  2. FatFighterTV on May 4th, 2009

    Yum – sounds so good! Thanks for making it healthy. :)

  3. Kendra on May 4th, 2009

    I love the lighter version! I buy pasta in bulk about how many cups dried pasta would you say equal 14.5 oz?

  4. maris on May 4th, 2009

    This sounds really, really good! When I was on Weight Watchers (my mom and I did it a few years ago and I still go back to it when I want to shed a few pounds) she used to make a chili mac all the time – it was a mainstay in our house!

  5. Lori Hopper on May 4th, 2009

    I cooked this tonight, and my kids loved it! I would never have thought to add chili to mac and cheese. It was a nice combination. I used the Barilla Plus pasta for some added protein. Great recipe on a cool rainy day.

  6. Steve on May 5th, 2009

    I think the ideas for reducing the calories and fat are a great service to us. Macaroni and cheese is a meal that is hard to cancel in my family. I recognize that a great deal of time went into this article. I didn’t like the statement that this recipe cut the calories below half of the original because that is misleading. I am sorry for being negative, but this article does not indicate the portion sizes; What was the original and what is the new? Going from 4 servings to 8 makes the significant calorie reduction that is unrelated to changing the ingredients. Also, the nutritional information listed is not worth anything without the serving size. How can anything be measured without consistent units?

  7. The Meal Makeover Moms on May 5th, 2009

    Hi Steve:
    Thanks for your feedback. One of the ways we often suggest folks cut calories is to watch their portions. By cutting back on portions (the original recipe suggested 4 servings and ours suggests 6 to 8), the rest of the plate can be filled with things like salad, crunchy fresh green beans, fresh fruit, etc. We typically suggest a pasta portion of 2 ounces dried per person. Based on the size of this casserole, a family of four could easily get one night’s dinner with plenty of leftovers for the next day. We used a 9 x 13-inch baking dish for the recipe — scooping the mac & cheese into 6, 7, or 8 portions is what we suggest (it will vary based on the ages of your children and their appetites).

    The way we also made this recipe healthier was to switch from full-fat milk and full-fat cheese to their reduced-fat counterparts. By doing this, we were able to lower the saturated fat. We also went from a butter-based roux to one made with canola oil for more heart-healthy omega-3 fats. Another important change was the use of a whole wheat blend pasta versus the usual white pasta. The whole wheat blend provides more fiber and other nutrients found in the whole grain.

    As always, we welcome comments. Thanks again!

  8. Lisa on May 5th, 2009

    I love how you lightened it up. In answer to your mango question, I only cut a few chunks…most were already bite size.

  9. Meal Makeover Moms on May 6th, 2009

    Hi Kendra: We just measured a 14.5 ounce box of Barilla Plus rotini and it was about 5 cups. Let us know what you think of the recipe!

  10. Meal Makeover Moms on May 6th, 2009

    Steve, we nutritionally analyzed Rachael Ray’s original recipe for the same number of servings as our made over version (7 servings). Even with the smaller portions her recipe still has 100 more calories per serving, twice the saturated fat, and half the fiber of our recipe. Hope that further answers your question. If you have a recipe you’d like us to lighten up feel free to send it our way!

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