In preparation for St. Patrick’s day, we asked a few Skinny Gene members for their  kid-tested, mother- approved green recipes.  We had the opportunity to see several 4 and 5 yr old children devour this particular recipe for Broccoli Mac and Cheese, so we thought, why not share it with you.

The ingredients:

 The tool:

Pasta:
1/2 box of favorite shape pasta noodles cooked and drained.

Sauce:

Steam broccoli cut into florets for 5-8 min or until easily pierced with a fork.  Move broccoli to a blender or use an immersion blender to purée broccoli with 1tbsp butter, pinch of salt, and as much liquid to get a smooth purée ( either use milk or the water from steaming the broccoli (for the extra vitamins)- about a 1/4 cup or more.  Set aside.

Basic cheese sauce:

1 cup milk, 1 tbsp butter, 1/4 tsp salt, 2tbsp Wondra Flour.  Put all ingredients into saucepan and heat to a boil on med heat, stirring frequently.  Once boiling, the basic white sauce will thicken.  Add to this 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, and 1/4 ground mustard.  Stir until cheese is melted smooth, then add broccoli purée, mix and pour over pasta.

Tips:

• If your kid only eats the electric orange color of the ‘boxed stuff’, omit broccoli and add 1/4 tsp turmeric.
•  For Greener color, increase the amount of broccoli florets used in the purée.
•  Double the recipe for party size portion.