Muscle Macaroni Cheese!!! Bold claim I know and this may not contain as much protein as the recipe that I found on Pinterest as I used a standard shop brought Cottage Cheese, but it still packs a punch on the protein score and as you don’t have to make a roux (flour & butter cooked together used to thicken sauces, can be a tricky one if your not used to cooking), it is quick and simple to prepare, perfect for that post workout dinner.

So lets try and crunch some numbers here…. I used a M&S full fat cottage cheese which packs an impressive 12.0g protein score per 100g, M&S British mature Cheddar with a whopping 25.4g of protein per 100g, Yeo Valley organic soured cream with 3.6g of protein per 100g, Garofalo Macaroni with 14g of protein per 100g (you can buy protein pasta, but it is rather expensive and probably easier to just use what you have in your store-cupboard and one medium egg which is roughly about 6.4g of protein , so not a bad score.

I absolutely loved it, it was very very moorish and very hard not to go back for seconds and thirds, but I managed to control myself, kept my portions under control, which is never easy for me as I am always hungry and never feel full, but it did mean that I had enough for two nights dinners and not having to cook on a Friday night after the late at work was fantastic. I have to confess I did pick a bit, I couldn’t help it as it was so delicious even cold and I did two days in a row of hard graft in the gym, so felt I could afford the treat . Life is to short to deprive yourself of the good things in life.

Now, I know that my lovely Daughter-in-Law makes the best macaroni cheese in the world, all my Son’s and Grandson’s never stop raving about it, I do how ever make a very good second and I will get that onto the blog at some point as it is the traditional family recipe that myself and my children all grew up on and comes from my rather battered and worn cookery book which now has no cover, no index and the book I have cooked nearly all my basic recipes from since I left home at 19.

I actually learnt to cook from this book, my Victoria Sponge, Bread & Butter Pudding and Crumble recipes all come from this book which was a gift to me when I was about 15 years old, 38 years later and I still love it, this book has pride of place on the side in my kitchen.

So I hope you enjoy this variation of a traditional macaroni cheese and if used as part of a training program I hope it helps to build those muscles up.

Love D 💋

16 oz (450g) full fat cottage cheese (full fat has a higher protein count)

8 oz (about 226g) sour cream (I just used a 200g pot and it was fine)

2 cups cheddar cheese, grated

1 egg, beaten

8 oz (2 cups) macaroni pasta

1/4 tsp salt (I always use freshly ground pink Himalayan salt

Bring a pan of salted water to the boil and cook your macaroni for 6-7 minutes (check your packet for cooking instructions as timing may vary) and drain.

In a large bowl combine the cooked macaroni, cottage cheese, sour cream, cheddar cheese, egg and salt. I mixed everything together, apart from the cooked macaroni, in a large bowl first as I wanted it all mixed through before adding the hot macaroni as I was worried it may curdle the mixture.

Pour mixture into a greased/buttered 8×10 baking dish. Top with a little extra grated cheese.

Bake at 350F, 180C for 25-30 minutes, until the top is melted and bubbling nicely, trust me the smell of it cooking is amazing, that home cooked smell that is perfect on a cold winters night.

Serve warm. 

You can serve it with garlic bread and a side salad if you wish, or just a heaped bowl sat on the sofa under a cozy blanket watching a horror film, candles lit….or is that just me 😉