A cozy comfort food classic gets a very veg-heavy makeover with this gorgeously creamy super green mac and cheese. Zucchini, broccolini, spinach, and leek are blended into a silky green sauce, folded through cheesy béchamel, then tossed with pasta and baked until golden and bubbling.
Super Green Mac and Cheese, at a Glance
⏰ Time: 1 hour (15 minutes prep, 45 minutes cook)
🍽️ Makes: 4 servings
🛒 Key Ingredients: Dried pasta, zucchini, broccolini, spinach, leek, cheddar, white miso paste, milk
🍳 Cooking Method: Stovetop, then baked
💪 Protein: 27g per serving
💕 Why it Works: Still proper comforting mac and cheese, just with lots of greens blitzed in.
💃 Perfect For: Cozy family dinners, colorful holiday sides, weekend dinners, getting more greens into comfort food
A Very Cheesy Way to Eat Your Greens
This recipe kind of feels like a bit of a cheat code. What do you mean I can get my greens in AND enjoy a gorgeously creamy mac and cheese at the same time?
And I’m talking proper mac and cheese here. Think a very lovely, silky cheese sauce that coats every piece of pasta, with a classic golden, bubbling cheesy topping. It just happens to have a very generous helping of vegetables blended right in too.
It’s also quite flexible, based on the greens you have to hand. While the recipe uses zucchini, leek, broccolini, spinach, and basil, it’s easy to get creative. Rummage through your veg drawer and use up what you have – I’ll often throw in wilting herbs (parsley, chives, extra basil are great) or pickled jalapeños for a little heat – and you can even use frozen spinach.
The result is a seriously gorgeous, cheesy bowl of comfort, just with a lot more greens. And if you like the sound of this recipe, you might want to try this one-pot green goddess lasagna, or super green rigatoni next.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Greens. I’m using a mix of zucchini, leek, broccolini, and spinach, but you could play around with this. Skip the broccolini and add more zucchini, swap the spinach for another leafy green like kale, or use scallions rather than a leek. Frozen spinach works well too.
- Milk. Whole milk is best for the creamiest flavor, but lower-fat milk works well too. You could use a plant-based milk if you prefer – I’ve had good results with oat milk.
- Cheese. I’m using strong, sharp cheddar for that classic rich, cheesy flavor. But Gruyère, Gouda, a little creamy blue cheese, or a mix works well too. I recommend grating your own cheese rather than using pre-shredded, which often contains an anti-caking agent that can stop it from melting quite as smoothly.
- Fish sauce. Optional, but I love the savory depth this brings to the mac and cheese. Salt alone isn’t quite the same. I promise it won’t make your pasta taste fishy.
- White miso paste. Similar in purpose to the fish sauce, this provides the sauce with a lovely, deep flavor and really helps to bring out the flavor of the vegetables.
- Pasta. Dried, short pasta is best. I’m using spirali, but macaroni, fusilli, or even penne work well.
How to Make Super Green Mac and Cheese
This is a step-by-step photo overview of how to make the mac and cheese – the full recipe with ingredient quantities is at the bottom of the page for you.
- Cook the leek, zucchini, garlic, and broccoli until soft.
- Add the spinach and wilt into the greens, then blitz into a smooth green sauce.
- Melt your butter, then add the flour to make your roux for the cheese sauce.
- Gradually whisk in the milk until lovely and thick, then add the cheese.
- Meanwhile, cook your pasta. Combine the green sauce with the cheese sauce.
- Add your cooked pasta and mix well. Taste, then season with the fish sauce if you’re using it.
- Transfer to a baking dish, and scatter with extra cheese.
- Bake until gorgeously bubbly and golden on top.
Kate’s Top Saucy Mac & Cheese Tips
Make sure the mac and cheese is saucier than you’d like it when you bake it. The pasta will absorb the sauce, and it’ll thicken in the oven. Mixing a little pasta water into the mac and cheese before baking is a good way to do this.
And I recommend cooking the pasta for less time than you would normally (2 minutes less than the recommended cooking time on your packet). Because the pasta continues cooking in the oven, if it’s slightly undercooked when you mix it with the sauce, it should end up perfect once baked.
Green Mac and Cheese FAQs
This can happen if the cheese gets too hot – heat can cause it to split, and can make the sauce grainy.
For a lovely smooth sauce, stir in the cheese off the heat, and grate your own cheese, rather than using pre-grated. Pre-shredded cheese often contains anti-caking agents that can impact how smoothly it melts.
There are a couple of ways you can do this. You can make both the green sauce and cheese sauce ahead of time – they’ll keep well for a couple of days in the fridge. Then, just cook the pasta, combine with the sauces, and bake when you’re ready to serve.
Or, you can assemble the mac and cheese, then cover it and pop it into the fridge for 24 hours before you want to bake it. I recommend making the mac and cheese a little saucier than you’d like if you do this, to account for the pasta absorbing the sauce in the fridge. You may need to add a little extra cooking time, as the mac and cheese will be fridge-cold.
You can. Everything is already cooked before it goes in the oven, so you can easily turn this into a stovetop mac and cheese to save a bit of time. You won’t get the same gorgeously crispy, cheesy topping, but it’ll still taste lovely.
Yes! This is a fab shortcut. You can throw it straight into the pan as the other greens are softening. Make sure you let the water evaporate so the blended sauce doesn’t get too watery.
Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to three days – I recommend reheating it either in the microwave until piping hot or on the stovetop.
You’ll need to add a little extra liquid when you reheat it to loosen up the sauce. Water or milk works well here.
Like this recipe? Try these pasta ideas next
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! You can leave a recipe rating and a comment below. And remember to tag @DishedByKate on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok if you’ve made one of my recipes. Seeing your recreations really makes my day 😊.
Creamy Super Green Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
Method
- Cook the greens. Start by heating your oven to 400℉ (200℃). Set a large, high-sided pan over medium heat, then add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the sliced leek, crushed garlic, grated zucchini, the chopped broccolini, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring, for about 10 minutes, until nicely softened. Add the spinach leaves, then stir as they wilt into the veggies.
- Blend the green sauce. Transfer the cooked greens to a blender, along with the fresh basil leaves, then blitz until smooth. Use a little water if needed to get things moving. The sauce will be quite thick.
- Make the cheesy béchamel sauce.In the same pan you used for your vegetables, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat, then mix in 1 tablespoon of white miso paste. Sprinkle in 2 tablespoons of flour, then cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes.Gradually pour in the milk, whisking until smooth. Cook gently until slightly thickened, then remove from the heat and stir in the grated cheddar.
- Cook the pasta. While you're making the cheesy sauce, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for two minutes less than the packet advises. This is because the pasta will continue cooking in the sauce in the oven.
- Combine the sauces and pasta. Pour the green sauce into the cheesy béchamel sauce in the pan, and mix to combine into a lovely pale green sauce. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the pasta directly into the sauce, then toss well to coat in the sauce. Loosen the sauce with a little of the pasta cooking water, then taste, and add the fish sauce if you're using it, and lots of black pepper.You want the mac and cheese to be quite saucy at this point – the pasta will keep absorbing liquid as it bakes.
- Top and bake.If you're using an ovenproof pan, sprinkle the extra cheddar evenly over the top of the mac and cheese, then transfer it into the oven to bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the top is gorgeously golden and the sauce is bubbling.If your pan isn't ovenproof, transfer the mac and cheese to a separate baking dish, then top and bake.
- Finish and serve.Remove the mac and cheese from the oven, then let it sit for a minute, before dividing between plates, and devouring while hot and super saucy.
