Kids Carrot Macaroni

My wonderful friend Sarah and fellow mommy gave me this idea to try.  Our toddlers are getting older and beginning to know when we get "sneaky" with their vegetables.  She decided that since carrots were orange, the sauce would look just like cheese sauce.  Well, she was right.  It looked and TASTED just like standard macaroni and cheese.  Awesome.

Serves 6 (I made a big portion for leftovers to freeze)

Ingredients:

2 cups whole wheat penne pasta
1 cup cooked baby carrots
1/2 cup low fat cream cheese
1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Method:

Cook pasta and set aside to cool.  Boil baby carrots until tender.  Using a blender or food processor, puree the carrots with the cream cheese and chicken broth until creamy.  Stir in salt, pepper and garlic powder.  Set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 350. 

Once all ingredients are cool, mix together with the cheddar cheese.  Pour into a baking dish and bake, covered, for 15 minutes.  Turn oven to broil, remove the lid of the dish, and broil about 4 minutes or until browned and bubbly on top.