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Fire Roasted Mac and Cheese with Feta

Yield: 6 servings
Prep Time: 18 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 53 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 pound orzo pasta
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 3 tablespoon flour
  • 2 ½ cups milk
  • 10 ounces shredded sharp white cheddar cheese
  • 4 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
  • ¾ cup feta cheese
  • 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 (14-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
  • 4 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9X13-inch pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
  • In a large pot of lightly salted boiling water, cook the orzo pasta until al dente according to package directions. Drain (but don't rinse) and set aside.
  • While the pasta is boiling, prepare the cheese mixture. In a 2- or 3-quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour until smooth and let the mixture cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly (this helps get rid of the floury taste).
  • Gradually stir in the milk, whisking constantly, and let it cook at a very gentle simmer for 4-5 minutes until it has thickened considerably.
  • Off the heat, stir in the cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, one handful at a time, making sure each addition has melted before adding the next. Stir in 1/2 cup of the feta cheese (it may not melt all the way - that's ok).
  • Stir in the oregano, salt and pepper. Add the undrained diced tomatoes and the spinach. Stir the mixture well to allow the spinach to wilt down a bit.
  • Stir in the cooked orzo. Spread the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup feta cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden and bubbly.
  • Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Cheese: I normally stay away from reduced fat cheese because of the taste/texture but ended up using a lowfat sharp white cheddar cheese (from Cabot) because it was all I could find and it worked really, really well. The texture might have been slightly different had I used a full fat cheese but we were none the wiser and it saved a few calories.