Rotini and Cheese

Feeding a large family can be time consuming and costly, especially after I decided to take as many processed foods as possible out of our diet. No more quick meals of Hamburger Helper or pigs in a blanket. I also stopped buying fruits and veggies in a can because of all the worry about chemicals seeping into the food from the metal cans. I definitely spend more time preparing and planning our meals, and the kids many times aren't as satisfied with what is offered to them. It's a daily struggle, but it's one that I hope someday they appreciate.

When I saw this Rotini and Cheese recipe in Cooking Light last month it looked like a kid pleaser: bacon, pasta, and cheese are always popular. With the availability of more nutritionally dense pasta, meatless meals are a cheap but still healthy option for kids.

2 bacon slices
1 Tbl. butter
1 Tbl. olive oil
1 c. finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tsp. all purpose flour
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 c. low fat milk (I used skim, and it worked fine)
3/4 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp pepper
5 c. hot cooked rotini (about 8 oz uncooked pasta)
3/4 c frozen peas, thawed

Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet until crisp. Take it out of the pan, crumble it, and set it aside. Over medium-high heat, add butter and oil to the bacon drippings and swirl to coat the pan. Add onion and saute for 5 minuted stirring occasionally. Add garlic and stir constantly for 30 seconds.

Check out these happy onions in their bacon dripping-olive oil- butter bath. I guess if I had to be cooked, I'd like to be cooked just liked these onions. And my goodness did they smell good!


Add flour, and saute one minute stirring frequently. Stir in mustard. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly with a whisk, and bring to a boil. Cook for 3 minutes or until slightly thickened.


Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Add cheese, salt, pepper stirring with a whisk until smooth. (note: I had to return the pan to low heat and continue to stir the cheese so it would melt.)

Place pan over low heat. Stir in bacon, pasta and peas; cook for one minute or until heated through.

I didn't get to see how much the kids ate because I had to run out the door to bowling league. I'm sure Soren, Brody, and Evie ate around the peas and probably ended up leaving most of the peas on their plate. I also forgot to take a photo of the finished product due to my rush out the door, but I snapped a photo of the leftovers.


The dish was really good fresh, but the leftovers were disappointing. I will definitely make this again, though.