"Eat Your Veggies" Mac n Cheese

Okay I don't post recipes.....ever.  First time for everything right?
Last summer I checked out Deceptively Delicious which is a cookbook by Jessica Seinfeld that gets your kids to eat veggies.  I actually found a lot of good recipes in it (and promptly entered them into my onetsp.com account) but my favorite one is her mac n cheese recipe.  It is sooo good.  The problem right now is Walker and I have cut back our carbs.  That means macaroni is a no-go.  A few weeks ago I pinned a recipe for mac n cheese using cauliflower instead of noodles.  The problem with that recipe is that it called for some things that I just don't buy, like Kraft singles.  I cannot stand those.  I'm sorry, I think they're gross.  And is it really cheese?  Well I digress....sooo this past weekend I had a great idea- use the mac n cheese recipe from Deceptively Delicious but just use the cauliflower in place of the noodles.   The result?  A yummy comfort-food recipe that is low-carb and really not too terrible for you!  I will add that I was really hoping to write in here "and even my picky 2 year old gobbled it up!" but....she took a few bites and promptly asked for "tiken" and ketchup.  ::sigh:: Anyway, Walker and I enjoyed it; hopefully you will too.  :)

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower (this made enough for about 4 servings; if you prefer to use pasta, you need 16 oz of macaroni)
• nonstick cooking spray
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 cup nonfat milk
• 1/2 cup each carrot puree and squash puree**
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 8 oz reduced fat cream cheese
• 1/2 tsp salt

Directions:
Chop cauliflower up and steam until tender.
While the cauliflower is cooking, coat a large saucepan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Add the oil, then the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture resembles a thick paste but has not browned, 1-2 minutes.
Add the milk and cook, stirring every now and then, until the mixture begins to thicken, 3-4 minutes. Add the vegetable puree, Cheddar, cream cheese, and seasonings, and stir until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth. Stir in the cauliflower and serve warm.

**The original recipe called for cauliflower puree.  I didn't really want to put cauliflower puree over cauliflower so I substituted the squash.  Really, you can use whatever mild-tasting vegetable puree you want.  And it doesn't even have to be 2 different vegetables- just as long as you have a cup of puree in there, it should be good.

Nutritional Info (based on 4 servings)
Calories: 476
Fat: 34 (okay I know this is high but I used regular cheese; if you use reduced fat cheese you can cut this down quite a bit!)
Carbs: 21
Fiber: 6
Protein: 23

And I will add that neither Walker nor I needed anything else to eat with dinner- it was very filling!