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You are here: Home / Dinner / Lighter Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese

Lighter Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese

October 2, 2017 by Liz 64 Comments

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Fall is here which means I’ll soon be craving all sorts of comfort foods! Macaroni and cheese has always been one of my favorites, but it usually feels more like a “special occasion” dish. Maybe that’s because it’s usually loaded up with tons of cheese and butter without a lot of redeeming health benefits. I can’t justify having it for dinner every night, but sometimes a girl needs her macaroni. Am I right? That’s where this lighter broccoli macaroni and cheese comes in.

This healthy baked macaroni and cheese will satisfy your cheesy cravings without all the calories and fat of traditional macaroni and cheese. It's a perfect side dish or vegetarian main dish!

So I played around with a traditional recipe, and switched some things up, namely adding broccoli and removing the massive amounts of butter. Ok, there were a few other changes, but read on for the full healthy baked macaroni and cheese recipe!

This healthy broccoli macaroni and cheese will satisfy your cheesy cravings without all the calories and fat of traditional macaroni and cheese. It's a perfect side dish or vegetarian main dish!

Print

Lighter Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese

This healthy baked macaroni and cheese will satisfy your cheesy cravings without all the calories and fat of traditional macaroni and cheese. It's a perfect side dish or vegetarian main dish!

★★★★★

5 from 4 reviews

A healthier version of traditional macaroni and cheese.

  • Author: Liz Thomson
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 20 mins
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 8
  • Category: Dinner
  • Cuisine: Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 16 oz chickpea macaroni noodles (like Banza) or whole wheat noodles
  • 1 large head of broccoli, chopped
  • 2 1/2 cups of skim milk
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese
  • 1 cup shredded smoked Gouda (or you can sub in more cheddar or a blend of cheddar and mozzarella)
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • Dash of pepper
  • 3 tbsp breadcrumbs
  • 3 tbsp Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
  3. Add in the macaroni and cook according to the package directions.
  4. When you have about 5 minutes left of the pasta cooking, add in the broccoli. (Check it out, one less dish to wash!)
  5. You can boil them together until both are tender.
  6. In a separate sauce pan, heat up the milk over medium heat.
  7. Right before it starts to simmer, whisk in the flour and cornstarch slowly and reduce heat to low.
  8. Slowly add in the cheeses until melted. You can turn the heat back up a bit if you need to.
  9. Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
  10. Combine the sauce and the macaroni in an 8×8 pan.
  11. Cover with breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese.
  12. Bake for another 10 minutes, or until the top begins to brown.

Notes

I’ve been loving Banza chickpea noodles and I swear you can’t taste this difference in this recipe! If you can’t find them or you’re not a fan of chickpeas, whole wheat noodles will do the trick.

If you’re short on time or you’re craving a really saucy macaroni and cheese, you can skip the baking part entirely and stop after step 9.

You can also prep everything until step 9 a few hours or a day before. Keep it in the fridge, and plan to add an extra time while you bake it to ensure it gets hot all the way through.

This healthy broccoli macaroni and cheese will satisfy your cheesy cravings without all the calories and fat of traditional macaroni and cheese. It's a perfect side dish or vegetarian main dish!

I’ve made this lighter broccoli macaroni and cheese for friends and roommates and I’ve even made it for our family’s Christmas dinner! It’s a perfect side dish or vegetarian main dish. Macaroni and cheese has always been one of my favorite comfort foods and with a recipe like this, I don’t have to save it for special occasions!

This healthy baked macaroni and cheese will satisfy your cheesy cravings without all the calories and fat of traditional macaroni and cheese. It's a perfect side dish or vegetarian main dish!

What’s your favorite comfort food?

This post was originally published in January, 2014. Updated October 2017.

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Filed Under: Dinner

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Tina Muir

    January 31, 2014 at 7:22 am

    I am always looking for a lighter mac and cheese. Even with the high miles I run, I sometimes dont wanna be weighed to the floor with heavy pasta dishes. This would be great! Thanks for the recipe 🙂

    Reply
  2. Lindsay

    January 31, 2014 at 8:25 am

    Like old times! 🙂 Even though that Jeopardy was really hard….and I got hardly any…haha. That mac was good, though!

    Reply
  3. lindsay

    January 31, 2014 at 8:35 am

    we used to have spaghetti casserole growing up. I swear i could eat that whole thing too! LOL! probably reason why i have a GF intolerance. haha But thank goodness for GF pasta now!

    Reply
  4. Sydney

    January 31, 2014 at 8:42 am

    I love family dinners! We do family dinner every night at Andrew’s parent’s house and everyone comes plus their significant others. We usually play games and switch off hosting.

    Reply
    • Liz

      February 1, 2014 at 7:33 am

      Aww that’s so fun!!

      Reply
  5. Kelly @ Kelly Runs For Food

    January 31, 2014 at 9:09 am

    I love mac n’ cheese, especially when it’s a little lighter so I don’t have to feel so bad about it. This looks seriously good!

    Reply
  6. AwesomelyOZ

    January 31, 2014 at 9:45 am

    hmm is the cornstarch required? I have everything for it except that 😛 Yay love cheesey recipes! keeping this one 🙂 Happy Friday Liz! -Iva

    Reply
    • Liz

      February 1, 2014 at 7:33 am

      I’m sure you could leave it out! It just makes the sauce a little but thicker. You could even just add a little extra flour and you’d probably get the same result!

      Reply
  7. Hollie

    January 31, 2014 at 10:15 am

    That just looks and sounds delicious. Even better that it is pretty healthy? Count me in. Always.

    Reply
  8. Diane @ Life of Di.

    January 31, 2014 at 10:48 am

    This looks really good 🙂 I wonder if I could get Marty to try it??

    Reply
    • Liz

      February 1, 2014 at 7:32 am

      Do it!!! (If he hates broccoli you could keep it on one side haha.)

      Reply
  9. Stephanie @ My Freckled Life

    January 31, 2014 at 1:30 pm

    Yummm, this sounds delicious! Smoked gouda in it sounds delicious!! Plus I always love adding broccoli (or peas!) to my macaroni and cheese!

    Reply
    • Liz

      February 1, 2014 at 7:31 am

      Smoked Gouda is my favorite!! I bet peas would be a delicious addition!

      Reply
  10. Parita @ myinnershakti

    January 31, 2014 at 1:37 pm

    I made mac n’ cheese this week and lightened it up a bit by using almond milk and a little (very little) less cheese. I like the idea of bulking it up with veggies though. I think I may roast some of my favorites and add them to the pot next time. Great tip!

    Reply
    • Liz

      February 1, 2014 at 7:31 am

      Oh yum! I should try this with almond milk!

      Reply
  11. Olivia @ Liv Lives Life

    January 31, 2014 at 4:50 pm

    Yummmm. Great recipe – can’t wait to try it!

    Reply
  12. Christy@SweetandSavoring

    February 1, 2014 at 8:33 am

    Oh man, I love Jeopardy but I haven’t watched it in forever! But anyway, yum! We usually make a broccoli pasta bake with ricotta and tomato sauce, but this is totally going on the menu for this week. Must get some gouda!

    Reply
  13. Ashley @ StyleOnHigh

    February 1, 2014 at 1:23 pm

    We watch Jeopardy with dinner, too! Only our “family” dinner involves a Hunger Games level of competitiveness! Haha, we take it pretty seriously.

    Reply
  14. Linz @ Itz Linz

    February 1, 2014 at 1:53 pm

    i love sneaking in veggies to meals and i also love bulking pasta dishes up by using veggies and beans!

    Reply
  15. Jessie

    February 2, 2014 at 8:20 pm

    Gouda cheese? um, i’ll take 2 or 3 servings please 🙂

    Reply
  16. Luv What You Do

    February 2, 2014 at 9:25 pm

    We love homemade mac and cheese and are always throwing something in the mix. Broccoli is the best!

    Reply
  17. Stephanie @cookinfanatic

    February 3, 2014 at 9:41 am

    Smoked gouda is my e’erythinggggggggg. Don’t think I’ve ever added it to mac n’ cheese – genius!

    Reply
  18. Melissa @ Freeing Imperfections

    February 10, 2014 at 6:10 pm

    This sounds so good. I love making mac n cheese too, but the cheese and fat always kills me. I already love broccoli and cheese so this has to be a winner! Yummy!

    Reply
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  40. Mindy Fewless

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    This looks so good! I can’t wait to make it for my kids and I!

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  41. Tina Dawson | Love is in my Tummy

    October 2, 2017 at 10:33 am

    I’m always looking for new and awesome mac and cheese recipes. This just went to the top of the list. I have been really into chickpea pasta lately!

    Reply
  42. Lisa Bynum

    October 2, 2017 at 10:34 am

    This looks so good, I bet I could even convince my kids to eat their broccoli! Making this for sure.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  43. Kristine

    October 2, 2017 at 11:10 am

    Holy moly does this macaroni and cheese sound delicious! And I personally believe adding broccoli to anything with cheese makes it a winner! Pinning to make this week, thanks!

    Reply
  44. Dannii

    October 2, 2017 at 11:32 am

    I love packing out mac and cheese with vegetables. It’s total comfort food, but with a healthy kick. Yum!

    Reply
    • Liz

      October 2, 2017 at 7:30 pm

      Exactly! You get all the cheesy goodness with a little extra nutritional boost!

      Reply
  45. Noor Fatima

    October 3, 2017 at 10:30 pm

    I thinks its about time I started adding veggies to my mac n cheese. This looks so delicious. Creamy and comforting. Just the recipe for fall.

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  46. Tina | The Worktop

    October 4, 2017 at 3:41 am

    This is what I do all the time too! I love adding broccoli and cauliflower. Great recipe!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  47. Helen of Fuss Free Flavours

    October 4, 2017 at 4:38 am

    We should be allowed to enjoy macaroni cheese some of the time, because it really is a great meal for the cooler nighs of Autumn. Tweeking a few things to take out the not so healthy bits is a great idea, and means it is still enjoyable, if not even more tasty.

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  48. Sarah

    October 4, 2017 at 6:46 am

    I’m loving everything about this! Love Banzo! Love broccoli! …and who doesn’t love mac n cheese! Yum!

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  49. Miss Polkadot

    October 4, 2017 at 5:52 pm

    Mmmh, yes, I like the sound of this. Not necessarily for it being lightened up but because broccoli, cheese and pasta work so well with each other. Mac and cheese isn’t a class

    Reply
    • Miss Polkadot

      October 4, 2017 at 5:54 pm

      Accidentally hit send too soon! Mac and cheese isn’t a classic over here but I’m sure I would have happily eaten this had my mum served it to us when I was a child.

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  50. Coco

    October 6, 2017 at 7:25 am

    Yum! Love mac & cheese!

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  51. Bernice

    October 6, 2017 at 8:36 am

    That looks seriously delicious! I’ve just added this to my list of receipes I must try!

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  52. Yvonne

    October 8, 2017 at 3:21 am

    Yum! I’m the same as you, absolutely love my mac n cheese but on it’s own it’s more of an indulgence food. Love how you made this version lighter! I usually add cauliflower to mine but I can imagine broccoli would go well too!

    Reply
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    October 18, 2017 at 6:06 am

    I love the addition of broccoli in this mac and cheese. Need to try this dish!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
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