Deceptive Mac & Cheese

My son’s favorite food is macaroni and cheese. It’s what he asks for all the time. His favorite restaurant (that we don’t get to go to much anymore) is McAlister’s Deli. But oh no- that’s not what it is called. It is the “Mac & Cheese Store”. And that’s what he wants to do for Kid’s Choice Night – every Friday. I only wish we could have those special treats that often. Since he doesn’t have any food allergies, I don’t want him to miss out on having a favorite restaurant and his own comfort foods. HOWEVER – I simply can’t bring myself to letting him have these types of meals all the time. I never want him to feel like I do and I never want him to have to deal with the inconveniences I have to so 90% of the time he will eat healthy. That means maybe once every couple months we will go to the “Mac & Cheese Store”. That’s at least until I completely fall off the deep end and turn into an absolute health food crazy (which gets closer each day!) Anyway – back to my point. I added some extra veggies to this dish and blended it so you can’t even tell it is there.  It’s completely dairy, gluten, soy and egg free and tastes great too!

1 cup cauliflower, cooked and mashed

2 Tbsp non-dairy butter
1 Tbsp coconut oil or olive oil
2 Tbsp tapioca starch
1 tsp garlic, minced
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper
1-2 cups almond milk
1 cup grated cheese (I used almond cheese mozzarella style)
12 oz cooked pasta (I used  a dairy free, GF, egg free, soy free rice penne pasta)
1 tsp parsley

• In a large stock pot, melt butter and coconut oil over medium heat. Add in garlic, salt and pepper.
• Once butter is melted, add in tapioca starch and mashed cauliflower. Cook for a couple of minutes until mixture is bubbly.
• Slowly add in at least one cup of milk while stirring continuously.
• Using an immersion blender, stir milk and cauliflower mixture until well blended. This is the sneaky part- you don’t want the cauliflower recognizable so blend as much as needed!
• Gradually add in more milk to make your desired consistency. It will continue to thicken as it cooks.
• Add in pasta and grated cheese. Stir until all pasta is coated and cheese is melted. Sprinkle with parsley .