Best Spinach Macaroni Cheese Recipes

LIGHTENED-UP SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Special equipment: a broiler-safe 2-quart baking dish
• Position an oven rack at the center of the oven, and preheat the broiler.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Reserve 3/4 cup of the pasta water; strain the pasta.
• Wipe out the pot. Add the butter, and melt over medium heat. Add the shallots, and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook, stirring, until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the flour, and whisk constantly until it begins to toast, about 2 minutes. (The flour will form a thick paste, but that's okay; just keep it moving in the pot.) Whisk in the milk and the reserved pasta water, and whisk constantly until the mixture is thick like gravy, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the sour cream, 2/3 cup of the mozzarella, the Swiss cheese and 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan. Once the cheeses have melted, add the spinach, and cook until just wilted, about 1 minute. Stir in the artichoke hearts, pasta, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Transfer to a broiler-safe 2-quart baking dish.
• Stir together the remaining 1/3 cup mozzarella and 3 tablespoons Parmesan in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the pasta. Broil until golden and bubbly, about 2 minutes.

SPINACH MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425.
• In medium sized pot, over medium heat, melt butter.
• Add the flour and cook for 3 minutes.
• Pour in the hot milk and cook until thickened.
• Add the spinach, cheese, seasonings, horseradish and mustard.
• Mix well.
• Combine with the cooked pasta.
• Place in a greased cassarole dish.
• Bake in oven for 15 minutes or until bubbling.

MACARONI AND CHEESE WITH GREEK YOGURT AND SPINACH

Steps:

• Set an oven rack to the top position and preheat to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Coat a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain macaroni, reserving 2 1/2 cups pasta water. Pour macaroni back into the pot.
• While the macaroni is cooking, place prosciutto on the prepared baking pan.
• Cook prosciutto on the top rack of the preheated oven until dry and crispy, but not burnt, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the oven and chop roughly. Lower the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and lower the rack to the middle position.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk for 1 minute. Add garlic powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, and pepper; cook for 1 minute more. Whisk in Greek yogurt and cook until heated through and bubbling, 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in 1 1/2 cups of the reserved pasta water; cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add cream cheese and stir until melted. Add a generous 1/4 cup each of Gruyere and Cheddar cheeses, stirring until thoroughly melted; repeat until all cheese had been added and sauce is thick. Stir in as much of the remaining pasta water as necessary to reach desired consistency.
• Stir spinach into the cooked macaroni. Add cheese sauce; stir until combined and macaroni is coated. Pour into the prepared baking pan and sprinkle prosciutto over top.
• Bake in the preheated oven until edges are bubbling slightly, 15 to 20 minutes.

LIGHT MACARONI AND CHEESE WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400F.
• Spray 8" square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
• In small bowl, whisk 1/4 cup of the milk and flour until smooth.
• In heavy medium saucepan, heat remaining 1 1/2 cups milk over medium heat until steaming.
• Add flour mixture; cook 2-3 minutes or until sauce boils and thickens, whisking constantly.
• Remove from heat; stir in cheddar cheese until melted.
• Stir in cottage cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg.
• Cook spinach according to package directions; drain.
• Rinse under cold running water; squeeze out excess moisture.
• Cook macaroni in large pot of boiling lightly salted water 4-5 minutes or until not quite tender, stirring often.
• (Macaroni will continue to cook while baking.) Drain; rinse with cold water.
• Drain again.
• In large bowl, stir together cheese sauce and macaroni.
• Spread half of the macaroni mixture in baking dish; spoon spinach over top.
• Spread remaining macaroni mixture over spinach layer; sprinkle with wheat germ.
• (Dish can be made to this point and refrigerated for 2 days or frozen for 2 months. Thaw in refrigerator before baking.) Bake 35-45 minutes or until bubbly and golden.
• TIP*If you can't find wheat germ, substitute an equal amount of Parmesan cheese, cracker crumbs or bread crumbs.
• VARIATION: To make Southwestern Macaroni and Cheese with Peppers, substitute 1 cup grated pepper Jack cheese for 1 cup of the cheddar cheese.
• Omit the nutmeg.
• Add 1 (4 1/2-oz.) can chopped mild green chiles, 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro and dash cayenne pepper to cheese sauce.
• Omit spinach.
• Instead, cook 2 cups thawed frozen pepper stir-fry vegetables in 1 teaspoon olive oil 3 to 4 minutes or until tender.
• Replace spinach with pepper mixture.

WHITE CHEDDAR SPINACH-BACON MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Cook macaroni as directed on pkg., adding spinach for the last min. Cook bacon in large saucepan. Remove bacon; save drippings in pan.
• Add flour to drippings; cook and stir until bubbly. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to boil, stirring constantly; cook and stir 3 to 5 min. or until thickened.
• Stir in 1 cup Cheddar and Parmesan; cook and stir until melted. Add bacon and macaroni mixture; mix well.
• Spoon into 1-1/2-qt. casserole; top with remaining cheddar. Bake 20 min.

MACARONI AND CHEESE AND SPINACH CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Defrost spinach. Press into sieve and remove liquid. Cook macaroni for 5 - 8 minutes. Mix spinach, drained macaroni and butter. Add shredded cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, salt and pepper. Beat milk and egg, then add. Bake in a greased 2-qt. dish at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

FOUR CHEESE SPINACH MACARONI

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions and drain well.
• In a dutch oven, melt the first 2 tablespoons of butter, add garlic and sauté for 2 minutes.
• Add milk and cook until thoroughly heated.
• Gradually stir in 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, the cream cheese, the mascarpone, mozzarella, salt and pepper and whisk until smooth.
• Stir in the spinach and cooked pasta and blend well.
• Place this mixture in a lightly greased 13x9x2-inch baking dish.
• In a small bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, remaining parmesan and butter and mix well.
• Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture over the macaroni mixture and bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes at 375°F.

THREE-CHEESE MACARONI WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees; grease a 3 quart baking dish or casserole dish; start bringing a large pot of water to a boil.
• In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter then add onions and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.
• Add pasta to other pot with water and boil for two minutes less than the package says to.
• Whisk flour into onion/butter mixture and stir for 2 minutes; stir in milk, whisking constantly until it thickens and starts to bubble.
• Remove from heat and stir in the salt, pepper, gorgonzola, fontina and 3/4 cup of the parmesan cheese until smooth and melted.
• Drain pasta well and return to large pot and add the cheese sauce and bag of spinach and mix well; pour into greased dish.
• Combine the remaining Parmesan and bread crumbs; sprinkle on top of macaroni; bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes; top should be lightly browned; cool for 5 minutes, garnish with parsley and dig in!

CHEROKEE GRILL MACARONI AND SPICY CHEESE WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• Thaw the frozen spinach in the refrigerator overnight.
• Squeeze as much excess water as possible out of spinach and set aside.
• Place the milk, garlic, and crushed red pepper in a saucepan.
• Bring to a simmer with low to medium heat.
• Saute the finely diced onion in 1 tbsp butter for about 5 minutes.
• Add the onion to the milk, then add the Dijon mustard, Tabasco, and beer.
• Continue to simmer, stirring often so the milk does not burn.
• Make a roux with 5 tbsp melter butter and 6 tbsp flour.
• Cook on low heat for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add to the milk mixture and mix well.
• Continue to simmer until the sauce thickens, then reduce heat.
• Add the cheese to the sauce (cut into small cubes so the cheese will melt faster.).
• Stir until the cheese is completely melted and blended into the sauce.
• Remove from heat.
• Cook the macaroni according to package directions.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked macaroni, cheese sauce, and the spinach.
• Mix until blended.
• Transfer to a large casserole dish.
• Top with grated cheddar cheese.
• Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or till hot.

20-MINUTE SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE MACARONI & CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook shells in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, about 10 minutes. Drain.
• Stir together cooked pasta shells, milk, butter and cheese packet. Stir in cream cheese until smooth.
• Fold in spinach and artichokes. Top with panko crumbs.

SPINACH-MACARONI & CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Bring large saucepan of water to boil. Add spinach; cook 1 to 2 min. or just until wilted. Drain. Use same pan to cook macaroni as directed on package, omitting salt. Meanwhile, melt margarine in large saucepan on medium heat. Add onions; cook 5 min., stirring frequently. Add garlic and flour; cook and stir 1 min. Whisk in milk; bring to boil, stirring constantly. Add 2-1/4 cups cheese; cook and stir until melted. Stir in pepper and nutmeg.
• Squeeze excess water from spinach; chop finely. Drain macaroni. Add to cheese sauce; stir until evenly coated. Spoon half the macaroni mixture into 13x9-inch baking dish; cover with spinach. Top with remaining macaroni mixture and shredded cheese.
• Bake 30 min. or until golden brown. Let stand 10 min. before serving.

SPINACH POWER PESTO MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a casserole dish.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Add baby spinach to the pot in the last minute of cooking; drain.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat; cook and stir onion until translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir garlic into onion mixture and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk 2 tablespoons pesto, flour, black pepper, and salt into onion mixture until smooth; whisk milk in gradually. Cook and stir milk mixture until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes; stir in 1 1/2 cups Cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, and 1/2 cup Asiago cheese; remove saucepan from heat and stir until cheeses are melted, about 1 minute.
• Stir cheese mixture into macaroni mixture; pour into prepared casserole dish. Cover dish with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove casserole from oven; increase oven temperature to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a small saucepan; stir in remaining 2 tablespoons pesto, 1/4 cup Cheddar cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, 1/4 cup Asiago cheese, and bread cubes. Remove casserole dish from oven, uncover, and top with bread mixture.
• Bake casserole with topping in the preheated oven, uncovered, until bubbly and golden, about 10 minutes.

SPINACH-MACARONI & CHEESE BAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Add spinach to large pan of boiling water; cook 1 to 2 min. or just until wilted. Drain in colander. Use same pan to cook macaroni as directed on package, omitting salt. Meanwhile, melt margarine in separate large pan on medium heat. Add garlic and flour; cook and stir 1 min. Whisk in milk; bring to boil, stirring constantly. Add 2-1/4 cups cheese; cook and stir until melted. Stir in pepper.
• Squeeze excess water from spinach; chop finely. Drain macaroni. Add to cheese sauce; stir until evenly coated. Spoon half the macaroni mixture into 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; cover with spinach. Top with remaining macaroni mixture and shredded cheese.
• Bake 30 min. or until golden brown. Let stand 10 min. before serving.

QUICK & CREAMY MACARONI & CHEESE WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• Cook macaroni as directed on package, omitting salt.
• Meanwhile, heat 1 Tbsp. oil in large saucepan on medium heat. Add spinach and garlic; cook and stir 3 min. or until spinach is wilted. Spoon into bowl; set aside.
• Heat remaining oil in same saucepan. Whisk in flour; cook and stir 1 min. Gradually whisk in milk; cook and stir 3 to 5 min. or until thickened. Add cheeses; cook and stir 2 to 3 min. or until shredded cheese is melted.
• Drain macaroni. Add to cheese sauce along with the spinach; cook and stir 3 min. or until heated through.

LIGHTENED-UP SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Special equipment: a broiler-safe 2-quart baking dish
• Position an oven rack at the center of the oven, and preheat the broiler.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Reserve 3/4 cup of the pasta water; strain the pasta.
• Wipe out the pot. Add the butter, and melt over medium heat. Add the shallots, and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook, stirring, until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the flour, and whisk constantly until it begins to toast, about 2 minutes. (The flour will form a thick paste, but that's okay; just keep it moving in the pot.) Whisk in the milk and the reserved pasta water, and whisk constantly until the mixture is thick like gravy, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the sour cream, 2/3 cup of the mozzarella, the Swiss cheese and 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan. Once the cheeses have melted, add the spinach, and cook until just wilted, about 1 minute. Stir in the artichoke hearts, pasta, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Transfer to a broiler-safe 2-quart baking dish.
• Stir together the remaining 1/3 cup mozzarella and 3 tablespoons Parmesan in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the pasta. Broil until golden and bubbly, about 2 minutes.

THREE CHEESE MACARONI WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• 1) Bring large pot of water to boil. Preheat oven to 375. Butter a shallow 3-qt baking dish or casserole. 2) Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute 5 minutes until slightly softened but not browned. Whisk in flour; cook 2 minutes until blended. Slowly whisk in milk. Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture bubbles and thickens. Remove from heat; stir in salt, pepper, then gorgonzola, fontina, and 3/4 cup parmesan cheeses. Stir until cheese melts and sauce is smooth; set aside. 3) Cook pasta 2 minutes less than suggested on pkg. Drain well. Return pasta to pot, add spinach and cheese sauce and toss until spinach is wilted and pasta is evenly coated. Pour into prepared baking dish. 4) Mix rest of parmesan with bread crumbs; sprinkle over top. 5) Bake 30 minutes until browned on top. Cool 5 minutes before serving.