Not the Blue Box

My sister and I are complete opposites. Just look at a picture of the two of us! Mary Ashley is a blond, I'm a brunette. She likes sweet, I prefer salty. I love my mother's homemade cheese sauce macaroni, and although I'm sure Mary Ashley loves it as well, she always asked for the fake mac and cheese from the blue box. In honor of my sister getting her first full time job, I thought I'd give her a more grown up mac and cheese recipe. She can mix everything up after a long day of work (or make it the night before), pour into her cast iron skillet and bake. The panko and cheese layer on top adds a deliciously satisfying crunch. I used a mixture of Parmesan, cheddar, and mozzarella to add complexity. Congratulations Mary Ashley!
Grown Up Macaroni and Cheese
2 cups elbow pasta
2 eggs, beaten
3 cups extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream
2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons all- purpose flour
2 teaspoons dry mustard
2 teaspoons paprika
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1 ½ cups grated extra sharp cheddar cheese/Parmesan
1 cup panko

-Boil pasta in salted water according to package directions. Strain.
-Combine the next 8 ingredients in a bowl with the warm pasta. Pour into a greased 9 inch cast iron skillet or a 9x13 casserole dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese and panko on top of the pasta.
-Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes or until bubbly in the middle.

Nutritious Yogurt

Remember the quirky things that your parents did that would slightly embarrass you? Well my dad would cook extra vegetables at pizza parties (because tomato sauce doesn't count as a veggie), and make homemade yogurt. Hmmm I wonder where I got the inspiration to be a dietitian? This home made yogurt wasn't the sweet store-bought goodness with fruit on the bottom. It was plain yogurt- tart and boring. Trying to make the yogurt more appetizing, my dad would add jam, honey, or fruit.... but to this little girl, plain yogurt was still weird. When I went off to college I saw an abundance of overly sweet yogurts including pina colada flavors and yogurt with sprinkles?!? I became unsatisfied and craved the creamy texture and soft tart flavor of my father's concoctions. Either my taste buds changed or the prejudice against my father's yogurt was finally wearing off. The simplicity of plain yogurt also appealed to my husband who later received a yogurt maker (from who else... my dad) Since then we have been making yogurt every week and I have a small reminder of my father's wonderful quirks that turned out to be delicious! Now I need to work on making homemade fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt :)

Now for the nutrition side: Yogurt is an excellent source of calcium and Vitamin D which help build stronger bones and teeth. This yummy dairy product also contains probiotics or 'good' bacteria: L. acidophilus, S. thermophilus, and L. bulgaricus. These probiotics can help promote intestinal health, aid in digestion and boost the immune system by fighting 'bad' bacteria in the gut. The bacteria in yogurt produces the lactase enzyme that helps digest lactose, making yogurt a great dairy product for lactose-intolerants. Oral antibiotics can kill all the bacteria (good and bad) in your GI tract and can cause some unpleasant symptoms. If you are wanting to re-populate your intestines with good bacteria try some yogurt, but make sure that it does contain probiotics or the bacterial species listed above.

Making your own yogurt may seem complicated but if you've got a yogurt maker, it's very simple! All you need is milk and yogurt culture, which can be purchased online or at most nutrition stores/Whole Foods. (We use the Yogourmet brand.) Depending on the type of milk you use, plain yogurt can contain 100-130ish calories per serving, 5 grams of fat, and 6 grams of protein.

Homemade Yogurt:

1 quart whole or 2% milk

5 gram packet of yogurt culture

1. Heat the milk in a saucepan over medium heat until milk starts to boil or reaches 180 degrees. Remove from heat.

2.When temperature drops to 115 degrees, stir in culture and pour into glass jars. Place jars into yogurt maker and incubate for 6- 10 hours (8 hours for my taste). If you prefer firm yogurt then I would increase the boil and machine time for your yogurt.

3. Remove jars from machine and chill in refrigerator before serving. Yogurt lasts around 2 weeks (although it never lasts more than a few days at my house).

Since a yogurt maker is essentially an incubator, you can make yogurt without the machine. Use recipe above, but after stirring in the culture, pour mixture into a large bowl and cover with a towel. Keep in a warm place for 6 to 8 hours (Examples: oven on warm setting, heating pad, or a double boiler over warm water). The yogurt needs to maintain a temperature of 110-115 degrees for proper development. This is the more difficult method, so if you intend on making yogurt often, the machine is worth the investment.