Introducing our version of Gluten Free and Lactose Free Mac and Cheese. Made entirely with basic lactose free milk and cheese. It is possible to be lactose intolerant and still enjoy a basic Mac & Cheese.
Mac and Cheese is a Staple in Most Childhoods
Mac and cheese was a staple of my childhood. Being raised Catholic meant no meat on Friday and my mother makes the best baked Mac and cheese you could imagine. Piles of fresh cheese, butter, milk and elbow noodles. As much as I loved it, it destroyed my intestines every time. Pain for two days. I still crave it. LOL. As an undiagnosed Celiac I made macaroni and cheese a staple of my own children’s Childhoods and it was a tough thing to give up. Once we got diagnosed, I could never get the cheese sauce right. We all missed it. Finding out two of us were lactose intolerant just meant we might never have it again.
Thank you Cabot for your Lactose Free Cheese!
We adore cheese in our house. It was a shock to go lactose free. I did it for my health, not my palate.
Every time you get a new diagnosis which changes your life, there is a little shock that goes along with it. As the shock of a lactose free life began to wear off, I got my footing again. I found first naturally lactose free cheese (mostly european, mostly aged) and then, through a simple miracle I found mainstream lactose free cheeses.
Lactose Free cheese is normally aged and has no sugar in the nutritional information. If there are 0 sugars under the carbohydrate listings, then there is no lactose. Lactose is a sugar in milk and other things. It exists and it gives us our favorite foods back. Thank you Aldi for your Lactose Free Cheese!
I fell in love with Aldi market when we moved to glens falls. It is like a little European store. Fantastic fresh vegetable prices. Amazing aged cheeses. It also has a few lines of gluten free food. It is my favorite healthy food shop and it comes with it’s own lines of lactose free cheese. They have economical Cheddar cheese with absolutely no lactose. They even have an American cheese that we can eat. Aldi makes my life better. It really does. As the tariffs hit, the economy is struggling and this shop is still striving to keep fresh food available and economical. Aldi allows me to get some of the best cheeses for an insanely decent price. Lactose Free and it’s not twice as expensive. THANK YOU ALDI!
A Little Corn Starch Made a Big Difference
Our basic flour mix does not work as a roux, so sauces have truly eluded me. One day I decided to just add some corn starch to the cheese sauce to thicken it and we have been making this recipe every since. Who Knew? As a baker and a home cook, I am aware that many people have issues with corn, and I naturally try to stay away from it. I am not sure why as no one in the house has problems with corn. My reaction may be more to corn syrup (which I try to never use), than to corn starch. Adding two tablespoons of corn starch to the milk actually makes a wonderfully silky sauce that we can just add lactose free cheese to. Gluten Free Lactose Free Mac and Cheese is a new household staple. Thank goodness because it is winter here in the northeast and there is nothing better that a warm bowl of pasta and cheese sauce. YUMMY.
Gluten Free and Lactose Free Mac and Cheese
A quick stovetop mac and cheese recipe that is gluten-free, lactose-free, and delicious.
Servings: 5
Cost: $9.00
Equipment
- small bowl
- 1 2 quart saucepan
- 1 Large pasta pot
- 1 grater
- 1 2 cup Measuring cup
Ingredients
- 1 box 12 ounces Barilla Gluten Free Elbows
- 2.25 cups Fairlife Lactose Free Milk
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- 200 grams grated lactose free cheddar cheese
- 58 grams aged parmesan cheese
- 6 slices lactose free american cheese
- to taste freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Grate Parmesan and Cheddar cheese and put in a bowl
- Fill a pasta pot with water and 2 TBSP of salt. Heat to a boil.
- While the pasta water begins to come to a boil, take the two quart sauce pan and add the lactose free milk to it. Heat the milk on medium heat. Add the corn starch to the milk and begin to stir as the milk heats up.
- As the corn starch begins to thicken the milk, add the grated cheese and combine until it melts. Keep the temperature of the pan down so the milk does not scorch. Whisk the cheese and the milk together until smooth.
- Once the pasta water boils, add the pasta and cook to the package directions.
- While the pasta is cooking, add the slices of american cheese to the cheese sauce. I cut them into quarters for ease in combining and melting.
- Once the cheese sauce is done, I pour it gently into the serving bowl for the pasta.
- Once the elbow pasta has completed cooking, drain in a collander and add to the pasta bowl with cheese sauce. Add freshly ground pepper and mix to combine.
Additional Resources:
The origins of Mac & Cheese
Cabot Lactose Free Cheese
Lactose Intolerance – an after affect of Celiac’s
Lactose Free Cheese? Thank you Cabot!