Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Name: Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Southern
Ingredients: Wholewheat pasta; Mature cheddar; Quark; Semi-skimmed milk; Plain flour; Salt; Black pepper

Baked Macaroni and Cheese, plated as one serving.

451 kcal a serving, against 626 for the traditional version. That is 175 kcal off, or 28%, with 24.1g of protein. Serves 8. 1 hour 15 minutes.

What the traditional version is

A proper Southern baked macaroni and cheese uses 500g dried pasta boiled just shy of done, then tossed with 400g grated full-fat cheddar. For the sauce, whisk 2 tins (800g) evaporated milk with 3 whole eggs, plenty of salt and pepper, then pour it over the cheesy pasta. Bake until set and golden, with bubbling pockets of cheese throughout and a rich, custardy finish. The fat and protein are both high, but it's the fat that wins by a landslide.

What changed, and what each change costs

Evaporated milk and eggs changed to semi-skimmed milk with a flour-thickened base

Swapping evaporated milk for semi-skimmed milk and thickening with flour keeps the sauce from separating, dials back the fat sharply, and gives some body without needing a full custard. Egg is cut entirely here.

What it costs you. It isn't creamy in the same way - you lose that slightly 'set' custard texture and the richness of evaporated milk. What you get is closer to a tempered cheese sauce, but the pasta still bakes up nicely if you don't overdo it.

Cheddar reduced by a third, with a little added quark for protein

Cheese does the heavy lifting for both flavour and calories. Reducing the cheddar gives room for more pasta and sauce, and swapping in quark keeps the protein up so the dish still pulls its weight.

What it costs you. Gone is the greasy cheese pull and the puddles of oil at the bottom. You'll still see cheese, but you won't need a napkin for the first mouthful.

Butter cut out entirely

Most of the time, the butter just greases the pasta and makes the top catch slightly. You don't need it if you're using a proper non-stick dish, and the cheese covers the rest.

What it costs you. You trade a crisper, more golden crust for a slightly more modest top. If it matters, finish with a flash under the grill.

Whole pasta for wholewheat pasta

Wholewheat pasta brings a bit more fibre and a tiny bump in protein, and it stands up better to being baked. If you can't stand the colour, pretend it's brown for a reason.

What it costs you. The texture is a bit nuttier and the colour is definitely on the muddy side, but once the cheese sauce is involved, no one will riot.

What goes in it

The ingredients, without the quantities. The weights are what the figures below are computed from, and they are in the book.

Wholewheat pasta
Mature cheddar
Quark
Semi-skimmed milk
Plain flour
Salt
Black pepper

How it starts

Boil the pasta in salted water for 2 minutes less than the packet says.
In a large saucepan, whisk the flour into the cold semi-skimmed milk, then place over medium heat.
Off the heat, stir in the quark until smooth.

The rest of the method, and every weight, is in Authentic-ish Southern.

The numbers

Per serving	Traditional	Lightened
Calories	626	451
Protein	29.5g	24.1g
Fat	30.3g	15.1g
Saturated fat	16.9g	8g
Carbohydrate	58.3g	56g
Protein per 100 kcal	4.7g	5.3g

Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Southern prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked. How every number is computed sets out the method.

Allergens. gluten, milk.

The method is in the book

You lose the holiday-level indulgence and the custard wobble, but you don't lose the point of mac and cheese. It's still a tray of cheesy pasta, golden and bubbling, with enough dairy to make you smile. You'll miss the deep puddles of cheese oil if you're feeling nostalgic, but your arteries will send you thank-you cards. Eat this after a long week and you'll feel satisfied, not sedated.

The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Southern, along with 50 more. Buy the paperback