Chicken and Broccoli Mac & Cheese | Homemade in my Le Creuset

I have not posted on here about my epic christmas (one of the many blog posts that I have not hit publish on), but lets just say my Le Creuset obsession was realized.  Ever since then I have been really trying to use my new loves as much as possible.  

This is a healthy take on the most decedant Mac and Cheese.  I was inspired to make this based on the Fancy Mac and Cheese from Ree Drumond.  I thought it looked so good, but knew I would need to figure out a way to make this healthy (as always, healthy and delicious is my cooking mission).  Low and behold it can be done, and you won't feel guilty for eating mac and cheese!

This recipe is surprisingly simple, and you can really use any cheese you have on hand.  I have tried this recipe multiple times and its really best to use strong pungent cheeses as you can get lots of flavor from small amounts of cheese.  I choose the cheeses below because I had them on hand!

Ingredients:

• 4 Servings of Whole Wheat Pasta 
• 1 Cup Cooked Chicken, chopped (I had leftover chicken from a previous meal..if you don't have cooked chicken on hand, I would recommend using a medium to large chicken breast...season and put in a foil packet and cook at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes) 
• 1 cup Broccoli, chopped (you can use as much or little as you want)
• 2 to 3 green onions, chopped 
• 2.5 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1.5 cups of skim milk 
• 1 cup low fat mozzarella 
• 1/2 cup swiss cheese
• 2 oz goat cheese 
• 0.5 cup fresh parmesan, grated 
• Chives (for garnish) 
• Salt and pepper to taste 

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425
• Boil pasta (per package directions) 
• In a skillet, cook your chopped broccoli and chives (medium heat for 5ish minutes...you will know its cooked when it starts to take on a bright green color) 
• In your Cast Iron French Oven (I use this one) melt butter.  Once the butter is melted, whisk in the flour (until the mixture is fully cooked and thickened.  Whisk in skim milk (aprox 2 minutes) until mixture starts to thicken.  Add cheese and continue to stir.  Add in salt and pepper to taste.  
• Add pasta, broccoli, green onions and chicken to the sauce in the cast iron french oven (if you don't have one, you can always use any baking dish).
• Place combined food into oven for 10 minutes (just until everything is hot and bubbly)   
• Top with chives
• Serve and enjoy!