Im very sorry about this terrible picture and I promise this dish tastes much better than my picture looks. But as a testament to the deliciousness of this recipe, my kids had eaten half of it before I could even grab my camera, so I took a quick snap with my phone before it was gone.
Pasta is one of my kids’ favorite dishes and thankfully for me, it’s one of the easiest to make. But pasta dishes often lack the correct balance of macro nutrients. They tend to be carb heavy and are missing veggies and protein. It’s great to get your kids to eat, I agree, but it is just as important that they are eating right…not just eating to be full. Kids often fill up on empty calories that contain zero or very few nutrients. It is vital during the early years that our growing kids are getting healthy calories. So for this reason, I am always creating new and different healthy pasta sauce recipes.
This one is a new fave. I’m so glad I made extra to have as quick freezer ready meals. The pumpkin adds a nice dose of extra nutrients and the goats cheese is an easy digestible dairy protein. I used dairy milk to boil the pumpkin, but you could also use almond milk to reduce the dairy if your child has any cow dairy intolerances. Often people that have a hard time digesting cow dairies can process goat or sheep cheese or milk more easily.
Pumpkin Mac and Goat Cheese
Course: Food, Lunch & Dinner6
servingsThis Mac & Cheese recipe is packed with nutrients and is delicious too! This recipe is also great for batch cooking. Make it a double recipe to stock your freezer with ready made meals.
Ingredients
2 cups pumpkin
3/4 cups milk (dairy or plant based)
1/2 tsp salt
1 garlic clove, diced
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
Directions
- Peel and chop pumpkin. Add pumpkin, milk, salt and garlic to a medium sauce pan and bring to boil over medium heat until pumpkin is soft enough to blend. The smaller you chop the pumpkin, the quicker it will cook.
- Once pumpkin is soft, approximately 10 minutes, pour all into a Vitamix or food processor and blend until smooth. Add goat cheese and blend until combined and creamy.
- Add sauce to cooked pasta, rice or steamed veggies. If there is any extra, freeze in individual-sized containers for quick freezer meals.
