More Mac and Cheese

Well, technically, this would be Shells and Cheese.

So, I have experimented with it a few times since my last mac and cheese post, but I just can't seem to make it as good as I want it to be.  Then today, I had a breakthrough.  It is still not quite worthy of the "done" recipe list that I have yet to build, but it is getting closer.  And honestly?  I really don't mind experimenting with mac and cheese a few more times!! 

Ingredients:
1 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese (my new favorite)
1 cup cauliflower puree
1 cup carrot puree
1 tsp mustard
Sprinkle salt and pepper (more pepper than salt, sorry, still just can't stop with the sprinkling!)
Some sort of cooked pasta, I used shells this time... I just used the rest of the box, shoot, I should have measured that too!! 

This time I cooked the sauce up separately so I could taste it as I was adding ingredients.  See, I am getting smarter.

Before I go on, if a recipe calls for 1 cup of shredded cheese... how exactly do you measure it?   Do you sort of sprinkle the cheese into the cup, or do you pack the cheese down into the cup, or do you just shred the whole block of cheese and call it good?

So, what about the breakthrough, you ask?  The breakthrough was in the flavor... with the addition of mustard!  Mustard made a world of difference.  I was shocked.  This had great flavor.

The texture is still not at all mac and cheese creaminess, though.  It sort of seems like the cheese isn't all melted.  I think it is due to the fact that I am not only trying to hide vegetables, but I am apparently trying to hide AS MUCH PUREE AS I POSSIBLY CAN.  So what has happened is this no longer resembles mac and cheese at all, which was reiterated by my research team...

The Verdict:

And I quote, "You can't call this mac and cheese, but it's good!" 

The good news is that I can remedy this.  See, this recipe has twice as much puree as cheese, and it would be easy to even out the ratio, or even add (gasp!) less veggies than cheese.  There would still be hidden veggies and the texture might be much closer to non-puree containing mac and cheese.  I also might try adding milk to thin out the sauce.  See how thick it looks?

Ha, it doesn't look like mac and cheese at all!  (And not just because it is shells...)  Actually, it looks a lot like some of the sauces I have been experimenting with for my sister... but that post will come out soon! 

So, I am going to work on the creaminess and hopefully soon I will have a recipe for my 'done' recipe list!