Recipe: Baked Mac and Cheese Slice (Gluten Free)

Easy Creamy Mac and Cheese Slice Recipe - The perfect meal prep recipe, this make ahead Mac and Cheese slice is packed full of protein and flavour. Cottage cheese and eggs add creaminess and protein to this lunch slice, whilst reducing the fat content. Gluten free, nut free, high protein, clean eating friendly and the perfect work lunch or lunchbox recipe.

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Life has been a little bit crazy lately. I feel like I should have all this extra time (maybe because it seems like everyone else does) but instead I've been chasing my tail just trying to keep up. 

Meal prep has been one thing that's keeping me somewhat sane though. Each weekend you'll find me in the kitchen making baked oatmeal, breakfast sandwiches, frittatas or some kind of baked option for breakfasts and lunches during the week. 

It might take an hour or so out of my weekend, but it saves me so much time during the week.

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This Mac and Cheese Slice (along with this Bacon Mac and Cheese Slice Recipe) is one of our go-tos because it's quick and easy to make and can be frozen to reheat and eat later on. 

We've been loading ours with extra veggies and a vitamin packed secret ingredient to make what seems like an indulgent lunch option even healthier.

Because who said Mac and Cheese can't be healthy? 

This Mac and Cheese Slice is loaded with protein and an easy way to sneak in some extra veggies. I freeze ours in individual slices to defrost in the fridge the night before and then reheat at work. 

So let me share the recipe with you >> 

Recipe: Bacon Mac and Cheese Slice

Easy Creamy Bacon Mac and Cheese Slice Recipe - The perfect meal prep recipe, this make ahead Mac and cheese slice is packed full of protein and flavour. Gluten free, high protein, nut free, clean eating friendly and the perfect work lunch or lunchbox recipe. 

Click to pin this recipe on Pinterest!

I feel like mac and cheese is one of those universally liked foods.

I mean, what's not to love. You've got creamy cheese and pasta, all wrapped up in a warm and comforting package.

... and if you're talking about this recipe, that package is a portable one, with the added flavour bonus of bacon.

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This Bacon Mac and Cheese Slice has become one of our favourite meal prep and work lunch recipes. It's super easy to make and seriously delicious to make. 

I make a huge batch every few weeks (alongside my Fried Rice Slice Recipe, Spanish Impossible Pie Recipe and other meal prep faves) to slice and freeze in individual portions. That way, all we have to do is pop a slice into a container, take it to work and reheat at lunch time. 

In just a few minutes, you have warm mac and cheese that's actually so much healthier than you'd expect.

So let me share the recipe with you! >> 

Recipe: Easy Salami Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni

There’s nothing pretty about this recipe. 

In fact, the lack of aesthetic appeal is exactly why I haven’t shared this recipe until now....

But when you make it over and over again and your husband raves about it every single time, you realise taste always wins over looks. 

This Salami and Ricotta Cannelloni Recipe is one of our all-time favourites. It’s inspired by an old recipe I first cooked in a year 7 food technology class at school - and I’ve been hooked on the flavour combination ever since.

It’s simple to make but impressive in its taste and I’m sure it will be a hit in your house too.

So let me share the recipe with you! >>

Recipe: Vegan Spaghetti and No-Meatballs

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"What are we having for dinner?"

"Spaghetti and no-meatballs"

"Spaghetti and no meatballs? Can you not just say spaghetti?"

"No, they're no-meatballs"

"Um... what? There's no meatballs? I get that, that means it's just spaghetti"

That's the conversation we had the first time I made these meatballs - and I can't really blame Jesse for being confused.

This recipe is for meatballs that don't involve any meat - but perhaps taste even better than any carnivorous creation. Luckily, they're a thousand times more delicious than they are confusing. 

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Made with mushrooms, lentils, flax and a whole lot of nutrient packed ingredients, this recipe is the perfect meat free meal and SO easy to make. 

Best of all? You can freeze them to defrost and enjoy later - meaning you can make a huge batch in advance, knowing you've always got them in the freezer when you're in need of something quick and easy. 

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They're perfect for vegan meatball subs (Subway style!), spaghetti, salads or just eating on their own - and they've become a family favourite! Something I never would have expected from a grain free and vegan recipe!

Even mushroom hating Jesse loves these no-meatballs - and I'm sure you will too!

So let me share the recipe with you! >> 

Recipe: Chicken Pot Pie Pasta (Healthy & Gluten Free)

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Happy New Year, friends! I thought I'd start the New Year with one of our favourite dinner recipes of the moment. One that's a comfort food made healthier and, dare I say it, more delicious and one that should fit in with whatever New Years Resolution you may have decided on. 

Inspired by a classic chicken pot pie but made 100x easier, this pasta recipe is super quick to make and will be loved by the whole family. Sneaking in veggies and coated in a rich and creamy (but secretly healthy!) sauce, it's a recipe that you'll be making over and over again. 

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You might be asking, why pasta? And the answer to that question is pretty simple... laziness. 

You see, I love all the flavours of chicken pot pie - but not being able to buy decent gluten free pastry means that chicken pot pie is a recipe that takes way more minutes than I'd like and always gets left for special occasions instead. 

Pasta, however, is quick and you can boil the pasta whilst you get the sauce ready - meaning this recipe can be made and on the table in less than 20 minutes. 

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But not only is it quick and easy - it's also all sorts of delicious. Whether you use gluten free or regular spaghetti or zucchini noodles (or any other vegetable noodles) for a low carb option, it's a healthy recipe that tastes anything but. 

So let me share the recipe with you  >> 

Recipe: "Corn on the Cob" Pasta (Gluten Free & Vegan)

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This recipe isn't going to win any awards.

It's not going to be served in fine dining restaurants (though, it could be... just even more deconstructed).

It's not going to feature in a glossy cookbook. 

It's not going to have tens of thousands of pins on Pinterest. 

It's not going to have you looking like a masterchef. 

To be honest, it's not really even a recipe at all...

But it is delicious - and it is one of Jesse's all time favourites - and I think that's more important than any of that. 

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This Corn on the Cob pasta is one of our summer favourites. When the corn is sweet and juicy, you'll find this on our dinner table at least once a fortnight (and let's be honest, we used canned corn in the winter too). 

It's ridiculously simple but that's perhaps what makes it so delicious. 

It takes everything you love about corn on the cob and turns it into something even more delicious because, erm, #pastaislife. 

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If you're feeling fancy, feel free to do what I do and use this pasta as a canvas to get creative. 

Add fresh herbs and goat cheese or feta, toss through crispy bacon pieces and parmesan cheese, add in some cooked chicken or throw in fresh zucchini - the possibilities are endless. 

But even if you enjoy it just the way it is, I promise you'll think it's delicious too. It's a recipe that everyone will love - fussy kids, fancy adults (they just won't admit to liking it in public) and college students on a teeny tiny budget (hello giant cans of super cheap corn!). 

So let me share the recipe with you! >> 

Recipe: Creamy Asparagus Pasta Sauce (Healthy & Gluten Free)

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I feel like every "cook" has their "party dish".

You know, the dish you make when you're entertaining or the food you whip up to bring to a friend's house for a barbeque or get together. 

One of my Mum's "party dishes" was the inspiration between this pasta recipe which has become one of our all time favourites. 

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Growing up, whenever we had people over my Mum would always make one of two dips. If it was summer, she'd make her avocado layer dip - but in the winter time? It was always her asparagus bread bowl dip. 

Baked in the oven inside a hollowed out cob loaf, the bread was crusty and warm and filled with the most delicious asparagus dip filling. 

My Mum doesn't even like vegetables (I'm not kidding... we have a total roll reversal in our house as I'm the vegetable lover who tells her to eat her vegetables) but she doesn't bat an eyelid over the asparagus in her bread bowl dip - and no one will bat an eyelid over the asparagus in this delicious pasta dish either.

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Blended until smooth and mixed with cream cheese, it's a creamy, decadent tasting pasta sauce that's totally healthy. 

Whether you add grilled chicken, sauteed mushrooms or simply stir the sauce through your favourite pasta, it's a winning dish that will fast become a family favourite. 

Heck, it's even become one of our "party dishes" when entertaining friends at home. They say you don't make friends with salad - but let me tell you, pasta definitely makes friends. 

So let me share the recipe with you! >> 

Recipe: Easy Homemade Ramen Noodle Soup (Gluten Free & Vegan!)

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Having coeliac disease means that most convenience foods are out of the question - especially when you add other allergies and intolerances on top of that! 

Luckily for me, I was a pretty fussy kid and didn't have too many convenience foods that I actually ate, however, as fussy as I was - I still loved to "share" my Mum's noodle soup from this authentic Asian restaurant. 

"Share" because Mum would always order it for herself (after asking me if I wanted my own and receiving a solid no) and I'd end up eating half of it. If it was just for me, it would go uneaten (because let's be honest... fussy Kristy only wanted to noodles and not the dumplings which Mum loved) but if Mum had it? I'd happily eat hers. 

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This recipe was inspired by that noodle soup, however, the reason I first made it was actually because of Jesse. He joked one night that he just wanted ramen for dinner and I took that joke and ran with it - turning a "lazy food" (according to Jesse) and turning it into something extraordinary. 

Now it's a dinner we eat all the time and I even make it up for lunches in the wintertime as it's the perfect thing to make in advance and enjoy later. All you have to do is add all of your ingredients, have a separate jar or container of stock and heat and eat when you're ready for it.  Whether you put it in a jar (which I did only because it's prettier) or a bowl, it's a delicious and easy meal that everyone will love.

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Best of all, though? It's the perfect way to clean out the fridge and sneak some extra veggies in. Jesse will happily eat a bowl full of veggies without even realising it whenever I make this soup - and I bet even fussy kids will happily slurp them up too ;) 

So let me share the recipe with you! >> 

Recipe: The Best Vegan Baked Mac and Cheese (Healthy & Gluten Free!)

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Generally when people find out I'm a food blogger, one of the first things they ask Jesse is; what is it like being married to a food blogger?

It's a question he is asked all the time - and it's usually followed by and how are you not 300 pounds?! (because somehow the healthy food blogger part gets left out whenever someone else introduces me).

I've heard a dozen answers from Jesse, but one always makes me giggle.... 

You never know what ingredient she's going to hide or what combination she's going to come up with. 

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Yup.  I married a guy who is what I like to call a traditional eater. He doesn't like fusion cuisine and he certainly doesn't think that vegetables should ever appear in baked goods (unless it's pumpkin pie...).

And I also married a guy who is a serious carnivore and dairy lover so vegan food is definitely off the menu at dinner time.

Well, it kind of is.... unless he doesn't know....

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This Vegan Baked Macaroni and Cheese Recipe was one of those sneaky recipes. I'd told Jesse we were having baked mac and cheese for dinner and that's all I said. 

Little did he know whilst he was at work that day, I was blending up a mac and cheese sauce that didn't involve any cheese at all.... in fact, it didn't even involve any dairy (and yes, I did it whilst he was at work because if he sees me with any ingredient that he knows isn't usually found in something he'll work it out). 

And yet, as he took the first bite he said what I wasn't really expecting....

"THIS is how mac and cheese is supposed to be!" 

And then he fist bumped me.... because we do that. 

And I knew I couldn't tell him yet... so I tried to hide the cheshire cat-like grin that spread across my face and keep a straight face so he didn't know something was up. 

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He finished the mac and cheese, bragging to my Mum (who knew it was vegan) about how awesome it was and after he put his plate in the dishwasher I said... "was there anything different about it?" 

"Well, it was the best you've ever made?"

No suspicion.... so I told him. And what was his response? "No way? Well, I kind of feel cheated... but at the same time I don't really care.... can we have it again tomorrow? And like, every day?" 

Success. 

So the moral of the story is, it kind of pays to be married to a food blogger - because it means you get to try lots of delicious things you wouldn't have otherwise tried.... like the world's best vegan mac and cheese recipe. 

And unsurprisingly it's been on the menu this week because it's my BIRTHWEEK! (aka: it's my birthday tomorrow so we're using the entire week as an excuse to make and eat all the delicious things). 

So let me share the recipe with you! >>