Ellie krieger's mac & cheese with butternut squash

1. NOTES: Basically, you are making a rue out of milk and squash. This makes it healthier, seasonal, more filling, but still really rich. The original recipe calls for using frozen puree of winter squash; I had a whole roasted butternut squash in my fridge--who doesn't?--so I just subbed that in, using an immersion blender to blend the milk and the squash (not frozen, but also not heated). Obviously, if you are not using frozen pureed squash, then the prep time will be a little bit longer to roast the squash with a little olive oil, salt and pepper (scoring the surface and baking until fork tender). I found that the original recipe underestimates the prep time if you need to shred the cheese yourself; buying whole blocks of cheese and whole squash in season makes the recipe more economical. Finally, I used a random assortment of dried pasta on my shelf (this was sort of a clean out the pantry recipe for me), so I definitely used some whole grain pasta. The extra protein and slightly tougher texture works well in this recipe.

2. Set your water to boil for the pasta; salt it before you add the pasta to infuse a little flavor! Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

3. Cook the macaroni according the package directions. Drain and transfer to the prepared baking dish. If, like me, you are terrible at timing, you may want to "hold" the drained pasta in the covered pan until you are ready to add the cheese/milk/squash mixture; the heat helps make everything spread nicely.

4. If using whole block cheese, start shredding. This can take a while. It's a perfect thing to do while the water is getting up to boil.

5. Place the squash and milk in a large saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally and breaking up the squash with a spoon until it is defrosted. If using whole squash, you will need to blend using either a potato masher (the slow way) or an immersion blender (the 21st century way).

6. Turn the heat up to medium and cook until the mixture is almost simmering, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cheddar, jack cheese, ricotta, salt, mustard, and cayenne (note, I didn't have any on hand, thus didn't use it; but I used regular pepper liberally). Pour this mixture over the macaroni and stir to combine.

7. Combine the breadcrumbs, Parmesan, and oil in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the top of the macaroni and cheese. Bake until the cheeses are bubbling around the edges, about 20 minutes, then broil for 3 minutes so the top is crisp and nicely browned.

8. I know you were just thinking, what's the nutritional info for this recipe; here's Ellie's calculations (using regular, not whole grain pasta): Number of servings: 8; Calories: 390; Total Fat: 11 g; Sat Fat: 6 g; Cholesterol: 35 mg; Sodium: 547 mg; Total Carbohydrate: 56 g; Fiber: 3.5 g; Protein: 18 g