Economy Gastronomy's macaroni cheese sized up + a better option

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm embarking on a trawl of recipes economical and gastronomical, submitting them to an extra test of whether they're actually decent for you.

Next up: Allegra and Paul's macaroni cheese with artichokes and bacon.  Right away, I was suspicious - macaroni and cheese is widely known as being one of the most wonderfully comforting dishes in the world yet one that's remarkably bad for you. And to add bacon to it just seemed a little over the top. (But to be fair, they did say it was optional.)

Furthermore, adding artichokes - instead of say, broccoli - seemed to be an expensive and more calorific choice as well.

So I dutifully added up the calories: without bacon, you're looking at 800 calories per portion. Add bacon back in, and you're looking at closer to 875-900. And there's are nearly no vegetables to be found in that meal, which doesn't please me at all.

But I don't want to be one of those people who says what they don't like but won't say what they do.

Check out Mostly Eating's Heart Healthy Macaroni Cheese.What I liked about his recipe from the start was the way it set out to fuse a crowd favourite like macaroni cheese with some healthy ingredients just as half-fat creme fraiche and wholegrain bread. But she didn't strike off everything tasty from the list - the cheddar is still full-fat and lovely, just not overused.

Tot that one up, and it's just under 600 calories per serving... 300 less than Economy Gastronomy's. That leaves you loads of room to add some fantastic in-season veggies to the side, with room to spare.