Cheesy Sweetcorn & Macaroni Minion Bake
Even the fussiest eater will love this nutritious and delicious pasta bake, packed with secret veggies. The cheesy sauce is in fact made from a blend of carrot, potato, sweet potato, onion and nutritional yeast flakes, which is low in fat, packed with goodness and very tasty. The macaroni is mixed with Green Giant sweetcorn, adding an extra portion of veggies. Decorating the cheesy topping Minion style, adds an element of fun that kids will love!
Ingredients (enough for 2 individual servings and a 7" pyrex dish)
For the sauce
2 medium potatoes
3 medium carrots
1 medium sweet potato
1 small onion
1 garlic clove
3/4 pt vegetable stock
1/2 cup of Engevita nutritional yeast flakes (available from health food stores)
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon smoky paprika
2 tablespoons olive oil
Other Ingredients
8oz macaroni
198g can of salt free Green Giant sweetcorn
Grated cheese, cheese slices, red pepper and raisins to decorate
Method
Chop the veggies and cook in stock until tender.
Allow to cool slightly then use a slotted spoon to remove cooked veggies into a food processor or blender.
Add a cupful of the cooking water.
Add the oil, Engevita and spices.
Blitz until smooth and creamy and set aside. (Adjust liquid and seasonings to get the perfect consistency and flavour.)
Cook the macaroni according to the pack instructions.
Drain and stir through the drained sweetcorn.
Add enough sauce to coat the pasta, to your liking (any leftover can be refrigerated for a few days).
Divide the mixture into individual ovenproof bowls for the children (put the rest into an ovenproof dish for the adults to share).
Top with grated cheese.
Use the cheese slices, pepper and raisins to make a Minion face on top of the kids' portions.
Cook in the oven at gas mark 5 for around 20 minutes until bubbling.
Sweetcorn Fritters - 'Steves & Crosses'
Who said kids shouldn't play with their food? With these tasty little Green Giant sweetcorn fritters, children can enjoy a fun snack and play a game of 'Steves & Crosses' - an edible minion version of noughts and crosses! Decorating half the fritters using cheese slices, peppers and raisins to create the Steve Minion, and topping the rest with a tomato ketchup cross makes the tastiest playing pieces. Four pieces of raw spaghetti will make the playing board so kids can play Tic-Tac-Toe before enjoying a healthy and yummy snack.
Ingredients (makes 12)
1 tablespoon SR flour
1 free range egg
198g can salt free Green Giant Sweetcorn
ground pepper
oil for frying
cheese slice, pepper, raisins and tomato sauce to decorate
Method
Put the flour, egg, seasoning and sweetcorn into a blender and blitz to form a thick batter.
Using a frying pan, heat a little oil and cook spoonfuls of batter in batches.
When underside is set, flip the fritter and cook the other side.
Decorate half the fritters using the cheese slice to make Steve's goggles. Use a piece of raisin and a piece of pepper to make the eye and mouth. Put a tomato sauce cross on the other fritters.
Serve them with the noughts and crosses grid made using raw spaghetti on a serving board. They look fun and kids will love playing Minion Steves & Crosses while enjoying a tasty snack.
***
We are looking forward to the Minion movie when it comes out later this month. Freddy is a big fan of Despicable Me and the Minions. The Minions really are the perfect pairing for Green Giant Sweetcorn. Both are yellow and sweet and loved by Freddy!
The two dishes I made went down a real treat with the family. Freddy loved playing with and eating the fritters and he loved the Minion pasta bake. It's great to see him tucking into healthy food and enjoying his dinner thanks to the appeal of the Minions!
