Oh boy, these are popular. They are SO DELICIOUS! They are a great snack, or a few could make a meal. You might consider 'em for hors d' oeuvres, too. The recipe is out there on the interwebs in several forms - the best one I found was was from Emily Bites, who adapted it from Slender Kitchen. The addition of spinach packs more nutrition into the recipe.
Be sure to thaw and drain the spinach first.
Ingredients
- 4 cups cooked whole-wheat or high fiber macaroni or penne pasta
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1 Tablespoon flour
- 1 cup skim milk
- 1 clove of garlic, minced, or diced shallot
- 6 oz of cheddar/gruyere mixed cheese (can buy mixture already shredded in a bag at Trader Joe’s – or do half and half on your own)
- 3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan
- 1 egg plus 1 egg white
- 1 10-oz. package of frozen chopped spinach, defrosted, and drained, squeezed to remove some of the liquid
- 2 green onions, chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spritz a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour, mixing it into the butter until thick. Stir in the milk and garlic, and bring the mixture to just under a boil. Add the shredded cheese, and whisk until it turns into a smooth sauce.
- Remove from the heat and mix in the egg plus the egg white until combined.
- In a large bowl, combine the pasta, spinach, green onions, cheese sauce, Parmesan, salt and pepper and mix. Spoon into the cups of your prepared muffin tin.
- Bake for 10 – 15 minutes until the tops are slightly browned. Cool for five minutes before removing from muffin tin – we used tongs and twisted the muffins slightly to get them out of the cups.
More Information
Print
Email
Subscribe to the newsletter!
You’ll get periodic updates with recipes, Q&A’s with chefs and kid food experts, observations, quizzes and simple activities for your kids — i.e., a fun farmer’s market treasure hunt. Don’t worry – we won’t bombard you with mail or ads.
