Mac & Cheese Veggie Bites with Homemade Nuggets

Prep Time
minutes

Cook Time
minutes

Total Time
minutes

Serving
size
Recipe by Bunnell Elementary School.
Ingredients
Mac & Cheese
- Butter (to grease muffin tins)
- 2 C elbow macaroni
- 1 C shredded cheddar cheese
- 4 oz cottage cheese
- 4 oz sour cream
- 1 C butternut squash, pureed
- ½ tsp salt
- 1/3 C grated parmesan cheese
- 1/3 C plain breadcrumbs
Nuggets
- Butter (to grease muffin tins)
- 2 lbs ground chicken
- 1-1/2 C whole wheat bread crumbs (reserve ½ C)
- 1 tsp basil
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp each salt & pepper
Preparation
Mac & Cheese
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease two muffin tins with butter and set aside.
- Boil pasta according to package directions. Drain with a colander, and return pasta back to pan.
- Stir in cottage cheese, cheddar cheese and sour cream into pasta until they are completely melted.
- Stir in pureed squash and salt, and mix well.
- Mix parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs in a small bowl. Put mac and cheese mixture into each of the muffin tin cavities.
- Sprinkle the top of each muffin with a tablespoon of the Parmesan-breadcrumb mixture. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
Nuggets
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease two baking sheets with butter, and set aside.
- In large bowl, use your hands to mix chicken, 1 cup of breadcrumbs, basil, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper.
- Make the mix described in step 2 into 30 nuggets, and coat the nuggets in the remaining breadcrumbs, making sure all sides are completely covered.
- Place nuggets on baking sheets, and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, flipping nuggets halfway through cooking time.