Cauliflower Chicken Mac and Cheese

By darteyMD On Oct 7, 2020

That they had me on Cauliflower Hen Mac and Cheese. Proper, this scrumptious mac cheese casserole is lightened with cauliflower, but it surely gives a lot taste (and cheese!)

Cauliflower Chicken Mac and Cheese in the bowl

We love Mac!

We’re large mac and cheese followers right here at Match Foodie Finds, and we’re large rooster casseroles followers too. Be excited as a result of this recipe connects the 2 and offers it a wholesome twist!

Hen Mac and Cheese is a well-liked dinner recipe, and we’re making issues a bit higher for you by including cauliflower! It is gluten-free too, which is a bonus for these with celiac illness!

Noodle time

One factor that we actually needed to look out for when testing this Cauliflower Hen Mac and Cheese was to make it as simple as potential to make. That’s the reason you’ll discover The pasta goes utterly uncooked within the baking dish. There is no such thing as a cooking concerned!

Gluten-free pasta: I additionally needed to say the kind of pasta we used – gluten free. We solely examined this recipe with one particular noodle. I repeat, a selected noodle and it is that truRoots Macaroni Elbows. Since these aren’t comprised of gluten or white flour, they cook dinner otherwise than common elbows.

Be aware: Be aware, nonetheless, that your baking time might fluctuate relying on the noodle you utilize!

Accumulation equation

Like the opposite casseroles at Match Foodie Finds, we adopted ours Accumulation equation: Greens + protein + entire grain merchandise. We do that to verify we’ve all of our bases coated and the entire meals teams in a single meal.

Different components are:

Hen breast
cauliflower
Cheese sauce
Elective toppings: wholemeal bread crumbs and bacon

Ensure you comply with all of our baking suggestions and instructions within the written recipe. They’re vital to verify your pasta would not get mushy whereas baking!

Spoons of cauliflower chicken mac and cheese

Are you able to do that vegan?

When you can in all probability do that vegan, we 100% not advocate it. Not solely would it’s important to take away the rooster, however you’d additionally need to recreate the entire cheese sauce to make it dairy-free.

Easy methods to retailer mac and cheese

Fridge: Retailer in an hermetic container, e.g. Glass Pyrex

as much as 5 days within the fridge.

Freezer: If you wish to freeze, we advocate placing it in a disposable /Aluminum baking dish

. Place a bit of plastic wrap on prime of the cooked, chilled casserole and squeeze out the entire air. Then wrap all the casserole in aluminum foil and put it within the freezer. Write the title and date of the casserole on the aluminum foil. Put within the freezer for as much as Three months.

To heat up: Take the frozen casserole out of the freezer and let it thaw within the fridge in a single day. Both microwave particular person parts of the casserole or warmth within the oven (we advocate 375ºF for 20 minutes).

Cauliflower Hen Mac and Cheese

That they had me on Cauliflower Hen Mac and Cheese. Proper, this scrumptious mac cheese casserole is lightened with cauliflower, but it surely has a lot taste (and cheese!)

Preparation: 20 minutesPrepare dinner: 40 minutesComplete: 1 hour

fats 24

carbohydrates 41

protein 31

yield sixth 1x

components

1 lb. Boneless and skinless rooster breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
half a head of cauliflower (four cups Florets)
1/four teaspoon Salt-
1/four teaspoon floor pepper
half teaspoon Garlic powder
half cup chicken soup
Eight ounces. gluten free macaroni elbows (we used TruRoots)

For the sauce

Three cups 1% milk (or any form, even dairy-free)
Three tablespoons Tapioca flour
Eight ounces Cheddar cheese

Elective toppings

Breadcrumbs
bacon
Inexperienced onion

handbook

Preheat the oven to 375ºF and spray a big casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray. Put apart.
Chop the cauliflower into 1.5-inch florets and place in a baking dish.
In a big pan, warmth a tablespoon of olive oil over excessive warmth.
Season the rooster with salt and pepper and brown for 1 to 1.5 minutes on all sides. Then minimize the rooster into items and place in a baking dish. Put apart.
Make cheese sauce by heating Three cups of 1% milk over medium / excessive warmth whereas stirring evenly.
After every boil, add a tablespoon of tapioca flour and proceed whisking in order that the milk doesn’t burn.
As soon as the milk begins to thicken (8-10 minutes) flip the warmth all the way down to low and slowly add Eight ounces. shredded white cheddar cheese. Do not forget to maintain wiping!
Add salt, pepper and garlic powder to the cheese sauce.
Pour cheese sauce over rooster / cauliflower, then add half a cup of rooster broth. Combine till every thing is united.
Bake uncovered 375ºF for 30 minutes.
Take the casserole out of the oven, add pasta and stir.
Bake for five minutes. Take away and stir. Put again in and bake for one more 5 minutes.
Take the casserole out of the oven and let it sit in your range for 5-10 minutes. Hold stirring steadily to launch warmth so the noodles do not proceed to cook dinner.
As soon as the casserole has cooled, prime with the elective breadcrumbs, bacon, and spring onions.
Take pleasure in!

Suggestions & hints

Pasta: We solely examined this recipe with truRoots Ancient Grain Elbow Pasta. It cooks shortly and continues to cook dinner when taken out of the oven. Pay attention to this when checking the pasta after 5 minutes. Each oven is a bit completely different, so watch out to not flip your pasta right into a mush!