Monday, October 15, 2007

Macaroni and Cheese - NUTRITIONISTA style

Last night I was craving comfort food...you know the craving that can only be satisfied by a dish that reminds you of childhood. The trouble with comfort food (or at least the ones I crave) is that they are usually pretty fatty and don't usually come with much in the way of nutrients.

In order to remedy this, I bring you...
Macaroni and Cheese NUTRITIONISTA Style

What you need:
about 2 cups brown rice pasta (I love love love Rizopia)
one medium size red onion, diced
one large clove garlic, diced
one bunch of kale, chopped (I know I run the risk using kale in every dish but I don't care! It's good for you)
about 1 tsp hot pepper flakes, more if you can take the heat
a generous amount of good quality feta cheese (by "good quality" I mean one that's organic and preferably from a sheep or a goat, which is more digestible than cow's cheese. It also has much more flavour. We are also trying to get away from traditional comfort foods that tend to be high in dairy. I used a sheep feta from Monforte Dairy that I got from my My local farmer's market.

In a pan, saute garlic and onion in some olive oil until onions begin to carmellize (you can usually tell this is happening when they become really fragrant). Meanwhile, boil your pasta. Add kale to pan and reduce heat and cover to allow it to steam. If it seems to dry, add a tiny bit of water.



Steam kale for about 7 minutes. Add red pepper flakes and feta to pan (heat should be at low now) and allow feta to melt into the kale and onion.
Once pasta is cooked, strain and add to pan slowly, mixing it well with the sauce.

Serve and enjoy!


Really, it tastes and looks amazing! I'm sorry this photo is not so much the best. Maybe I should have taken more lighting courses in university.


Take care,
THE NUTRITIONISTA

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