Vegan Butternut Squash Mac n Cheese Casserole: Gluten Free

Here is today’s Yummy Yummy!

Oh how my family loves this one!

After some diagnostic testing I learn that not only I am low in my B Vitamins… but so are my children. What am I going to do? My youngest son is so little that he wasn’t ready to eat vitamins. My older son doesn’t like taking vitamins, but we all need to increase Vitamin B intake…

Butternut Squash is rich in B-complex group of vitamins like Folate, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B-6 (Pyridoxine), Thiamin and Pantothenic Acid. Butternut has a similar mineral profile as pumpkin, containing adequate levels of minerals like iron, zinc, copper, calcium, potassium and phosphorus.

How do you know if you or your child is low in B Vitamins? The best way to know is to have your Homocysteine Levels tested! It’s especially critical if Heart Disease and/or Auto-immune disease are in your family.

People & Children who may be low in vitamin B:

– Anyone who does not eat regular well-balanced meals from fresh whole vegetables and fruits.

– Anyone with chronic medical conditions and digestive problems.

– Anyone who plays physically demanding sports.

– Anyone who eats a lot of fast foods/processed foods and sodas.

– Anyone who may have a gene polymorphism like MTHFR.

I have one son who underwent heavy chemotherapy and one son who had digestive issues, low B vitamins for them made perfect sense. Why was I low in B-vitamins?

It turns out I have a gene that does not properly metabolize Folate and other B vitamins. It is extremely critical that we all know our B-Vitamin status in order to help prevent Alzheimer Disease, for Healthy Heart, Pregnancies and to ensure that our kid’s brains are growing adequately.

Butternut Squash became a big staple in our diet. Butternut this and butternut that! Here is one of our favorites! 🙂

BUTTERNUT SQUASH MAC N CHEESE CASSEROLE

INGREDIENTS:

1 Medium Butternut
2 Carrots chopped

6 Cloves of Garlic
2 Cups Gluten Free Vegetable Stock
1 Pound of Pasta (Rigatoni, Macaroni, Penne)
2 Cups of Vegan Cheese (I use Daiya Cheese)
2 Cups of Seasoned Gluten Free Bread Crumbs
1 Tablespoon of Finely Chopped Cilantro

1 Celery stalk finely chopped

1/4 Small White Onion finely chopped

1/4 Teaspoon of Sea Salt

Cooking Spray (I use Coconut Spray)

Baking Instructions:

Cut squash in half and bake at 375 degrees for about 45 mins – 1 hour.
While Butternut is Baking, Cook Gluten Free Pasta of Choice, drain, rinse.
Cook Celery, Carrots, Onion, Salt, 1 3/4 Cup Vegetable Stock in a Sauce Pan, for 10- 15 mins on medium heat.
After baking Butternut, scoop butternut out of shell, then add 3 cloves of garlic, 1/4 cup of Stock to a food processor/blender and puree.
Lightly coat large casserole dish with cooking spray.
After cooking Celery, Carrots, Onion for 15 minutes, mix in 1 Cup of Seasoned Croutons, turn off heat.
When Pasta is done cooking, drain, rinse.
Fold in 1 Cup of cheese to the Noodles. (more if you like it really cheesy 😉
THEN create layers of squash puree & noodles in the Casserole dish.
While the pasta is cooking, put 1- 2 garlic cloves, 1 Cup of and cheese, 2 cups of Croutons, Cilantro in a food processor & pulse.
Top the Casserole with Vegan Cheese/Crouton mixture and broil for 12 minutes until browned.

Yummy Yummy Baby! 🙂

B Vitamins work synergistically, so its important to take them together. If you are low in B vitamins, food is usually not enough. Consult your health practioner about B-Complex vitamins, especially Folate & B-12.

*Note, Folate is not synthetic Folic Acid.

Thanks and see you soon, Dr. Dee 🙂