Make a creamy sauce sans butter or flour.
With the holidays come indulgences, but that doesn't mean you can't fit in quick workouts and make healthier versions of your favorite Thanksgiving dishes. In this series, Julia Heffelfinger, a Denver-based recipe developer, shares culinary tips for reinventing classic comfort foods. Previously, she showed us how to use garlic confit instead of butter for creamy mashed potatoes and how to use chia seeds in apple crisp in lieu of flour. This week: how to elevate mac and cheese.
"The secret to making a healthier cheese sauce is an ingredient called sodium citrate," says Heffelfinger. "It's a flavorless powder derived from citrus fruits that has the ability to emulsify sauces by preventing the dairy fat and water in cheese from separating (which is what gives you a stringy texture)," she explains. "In addition to a silky-smooth consistency, it can make harder (and more flavorful) aged cheeses melt down more easily."
Pro tip: The sauce will only be as flavorful as the cheese so opt for something nutty and sharp like a Tillamook aged cheddar or a robust blue.
Baked Mac andCheese with Greens
Serves 8