Last week, I was craving Mac & Cheese and headed to the grocery store with full intentions of buying a gluten-free/dairy-free boxed version. I looked at the back of the box to read the ingredients and immediately felt discouraged (many of the ingredients I could not pronounce). I decided I would make it myself, using items I felt comfortable with - the fewer ingredients on the list, the better.
As someone trying to navigate a healthy diet while enjoying a normal lifestyle, I find balance really important. I don't want to be a slave to junk food, but I also don't want to be a slave to healthy/raw/organic/non-gmo/paleo food. When I dine out, I try to enjoy the experience while not worrying if my food was cooked in canola oil. When I'm home, I find joy out of cooking with healthy ingredients that I chose for myself and my family.
This mac n'cheese recipe isn't paleo, or whole30, or even that healthy. But it's gluten free/soy free/lactose free and its DELICIOUS. The recipe (which is at the end of the post) isn't perfect, I literally made it up and I'm not a trained chef so I encourage you to tweak it to your taste - more cheese, different brands, more toppings? Have fun with it!
So simple!
I've been preferring this New Barn brand of Almond milk because of the short list in the ingredient section. I would never drink a glass of it (not enough taste for me), but it's a great addition to smoothies/cooking/baking.
Grass-fed is best, and ghee is lactose free!
I chose jarlsberg cheese as it is naturally lactose free, as well as a grass-fed sharp, well-aged dubliner, the longer a cheese is aged, the longer the lactose has to break-down and become more tolerable (over 18 months). You could also use gruyere, almond ricotta, or a sharp cheddar.
Remember all that balance I was talking about? yeah...I added ketchup to my mac-n-cheese because, pregnancy.
Recipe //
1 1/2 cups brown rice pasta
1/2 cup Almond Milk
3/4 cup Jarlsberg
3/4 cup Cheddar
2 tbsp Ghee
Cook pasta according to the package. Combine cheese, milk, and ghee in sauce pan until melted completely, stirring often. Strain pasts and add to cheese sauce. Salt & Pepper to taste. Enjoy!