Toddler-Friendly Dairy-Free Mac & Cheese
Ah, mac and cheese, the staple of many a childhood. My family would often have “Wacky Mac” or otherwise known to Canadians as “Kraft dinner” for Sunday lunch (I’d always be provided with a safe option too).
I want my toddler to experience all of the fun childhood foods, while balancing my allergen safety and his nutritional needs!
Would a toddler friendly mac and cheese made without dairy still taste any good? More importantly than my opinion, would my toddler like it? To the lab! I mean kitchen.
Hypothesis 1: This toddler-friendly mac and cheese recipe would be delicious even free of any dairy!
Hypothesis 2: This toddler-friendly mac and cheese recipe would be enjoyed by it’s target audience (Littlest Reviewer).
Method
Recipe Source:
https://www.yummytoddlerfood.com/easy-sweet-potato-mac-and-cheese/
What excited me about this recipe is how easy it is; after all, how many parents with toddlers have time for involved recipes? Second, I was intrigued by the inclusion of sweet potato as added nutrients and sauce texture.
Dairy-Free Modifications:
Instead of cheddar cheese, I used Bettergoods Plant Based Cheddar
Instead of milk, I used soy milk made from Fearn soya powder and water
Instead of butter, I used Imperial brand margarine.
Procedures:
This is one of the SIMPLEST recipes you’ll make.
You’ll start by boiling your noodles. For extra nutritional value, I made these chickpea elbow noodles from Banza. Drain.
Then add your ingredients to the pot and mix over low heat. Ta da!
Toddler-Friendly Mac & “Cheese” Ingredients
As you can see in the photo above, for added ease, I used a container of pureed sweet potato; however, I’m sure it wouldn’t add too much extra effort to boil up or microwave and puree a sweet potato. But sometimes any extra effort is too much effort.
Honestly, no process photos because this recipe came together THAT quickly!
You don’t even really need to pre-mix the sauce ingredients! The original recipe asks you to melt your butter first, but I did not notice and added it straight to the pot, and it still worked great.
Note: I was skeptical of this recipe too! So I only made a half batch, keeping the rest of my noodles plain.
Results
Ta da! Easy, simple, orange, silky dairy free mac and cheese made with sweet potato for toddlers and adults to enjoy.
Discussion
Honestly, I’d say hypothesis 1 was partially supported. It was ok, but slightly bland. Which makes sense for toddler food! And you can’t really taste any distinguishing sweet potato flavor. For serving to adults, I’d definitely add salt and pepper, and perhaps a dash of Worcestershire sauce.
Of course, the lack of depth of flavor may be related to the dairy-free cheese. I’m sure real cheddar has a lot more flavor! I’ll keep experimenting with different brands. I will say, the texture of the sauce on the noodles was smooth and silky, so this brand of dairy-free cheese did melt well and provide good texture. No cheese pull, but that wasn’t what we were after (could my toddler BE any more messy? Actually, credit where credit’s due, he’s not bad).
RIP, Chandler.
But more importantly, was hypothesis 2 supported? I’m happy to share that my emerging toddler, Littlest Reviewer, loved it! He gobbled it up and insisted on feeding himself.
Allergen statement:
With my modifications, this recipe can be made free of dairy. This recipe is also free of many other common allergens, including eggs and nuts ( as you use a nut-free butter substitute such as Imperial brand margarine (used above), or Country Crock Plant Butter made with olive oil). It can be made gluten-free, as I did by using chickpea pasta (also check your plant butter too).
Future directions:
In the future, I will try different dairy-free cheeses, and add-ins to the sauce like spices to make the flavor a little more interesting. Perhaps fresh sweet potato would also be nice?
That being said, my target audience loved it, so perhaps no need to change!
What would you do? Would you try this recipe? Drop a comment here or on Instagram @dairyfreewithemily!