Low Carb Mac and Cheese in a Minute

Low carb mac and cheese isn’t impossible — and this recipe is made in a few minutes in the microwave. Cauliflower stands in for the pasta in this Atkins friendly recipe.

Isn’t food in a jar cute? It’s all the rage on Pinterest now. It seems like you can find about anything in a jar?? I’m waiting for the Filet Mignon in a jar, personally.

Food in a jar isn’t anything new. A lot of us have used those nifty canning jars for decades. I mean, what else are you going to do with them when canning season is over and you start emptying them out? I ?must have 200 canning jars stored in my high cupboards and I don’t have time to garden or can anymore.

If you ask someone who is low carbing what food they miss most they are likely to have macaroni and cheese on the list, right? Well, I haven’t been happy with the various faux mac and cheese recipes. The texture was weird, the flavor wasn’t what I was looking for… you know the story.

You know what I did, right?

Yup. I made my own. But not just that. I made mac and cheese that you can cook in a jar. One cheesy serving that you can take to work and cook in the microwave. One comforting meal that has just a few carbs, smells delicious and goes anywhere. You can even make several jars and keep them in your refrigerator for instant meals.

If you want to freeze the jars you can but you will need to blanch the cauliflower before adding it to the jar, ‘k?

It isn’t exactly mac and cheese?? I mean that’s a lot to ask of cauliflower. It is delicious and I bet is completely curbs those cravings for… you know. That stuff.

Recently there have been a lot of comments that the calorie count was much higher than I figured. This was due to a typo in the recipe which called for 1/4 cup of cheddar or 4 ounces… 1/4 cup cheddar is only one ounce – my mistake and I do apologize. The nutrition info is correct. Thanks.

Print Pin Recipe

Faux Mac and Cheese in a Jar (Induction)

An easy mac and cheese substitute that you can easily take to work and microwave it right in the jar.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American - low -carb, American Classic

Keyword cheese, mac and cheese, macaroni

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 3 minutes

Total Time 8 minutes

Servings 1

Calories 308kcal

Author Katherine Peters

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups cauliflower broken into small florets
• 2 tablespoon heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon of water
• 1 tablespoon cream cheese broken into small pieces
• 1 teaspoon spicy mustard
• A couple of drops of hot sauce
• 1/4 cup smoky cheddar or extra sharp cheddar
• Salt
• Coarsly ground black pepper

Instructions

• Mix the cream, water, mustard, and the hot sauce and put into the bottom of a half pint wide mouth jar.
• Add a pinch of the cheese and a few crumbles of cream cheese.
• Add a layer of the raw cauliflower.
• Add a layer of cheese and cream cheese.
• Repeat ending with a layer of cheese.
• Sprinkle with salt and generously add pepper.
• Cover the top with plastic wrap and then the screw on jar lid.
• Store in the refrigerator

To Serve

• Take the lid off.
• Leave the plastic wrap on and microwave for 1 1/2 minutes.
• Shake the jar well.
• Microwave for about 1 1/2 minutes more - or until as tender as you like.
• Shake the jar to mix the cheese and sauce.
• Let sit for 1 minutes.
• Carefully remove plastic wrap and enjoy

Notes

Protein: 11.4

Nutrition

Calories: 308kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 87mg | Sodium: 335mg | Potassium: 526mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 922IU | Vitamin C: 73mg | Calcium: 273mg | Iron: 1mg

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