Love for the famous mac and cheese begins at childhood and continues into adulthood. Well, until you said “no” to pasta in your diet, right? No! Just because you dropped pasta from your diet doesn’t mean you stop loving a warm bowl of creamy cheesy sauce. We say no pasta, no problem.
Our ultimate baked creamy keto “mac” and cheese is delicious! Dig into a velvety creamy cheese layer through a crispy golden baked topping. This keto mac and cheese is not made with cauliflower or shirataki noodles. We also don’t use flour so it’s gluten free. This is a baked tasty spaghetti squash recipe. The ultimate low carb side dish that is worthy of making it on your Christmas or Thanksgiving menu. Who doesn’t love a side of creamy melted cheese? Plus, with spaghetti squash being a winter veggie its perfect for this time of year.What’s awesome about the spaghetti squash is the yellow skin makes the perfect baking dish and unique serving dish. It looks beautiful on the table. What’s even more beautiful about our ultimate baked keto mac and cheese is the macros on this dish. Each serving of cheesy goodness has 10 g total carbs and 8 g net carbs with only 293 calories!
The cheese is the star ingredient in this recipe so use a quality sharp white cheddar cheese for the best taste. I use a block of Tillamook sharp white cheddar cheese. I know using packaged shredded cheese is more convenient but taking an extra few minutes to hand grate a block of cheese will allow the cheese to melt way better.
Butter and cream cheese work perfectly to thicken the cheese sauce making it velvety smooth.
This recipe can be converted from a side dish to the main course just by adding a few hearty ingredients before baking.
1. Bacon: add 4-6 slices of crumbled cooked bacon
2. Crab meat or Lobster: add 4-6 oz of lump crab meat or lobster with 1 chopped shallot
3. Sausage: ground cooked sausage, chicken sausage or chorizo
4. Ground or shredded cooked chicken and spinach
Baking Spaghetti squash is simple.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the squash in half -lengthwise and scoop out the ribbing and seeds. Place the two halves on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil. Drizzle about 1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil inside the squash. Sprinkle with pepper and salt. Turn the spaghetti squash over with skin up on the cookie sheet. Poke holes in the skin of the squash with a fork. Bake for 35 minutes.
Tip: If you have a hard time cutting the spaghetti squash in half, soften the skin by baking it for about 10 minutes in the oven.
So start the oven. You are about to serve your family their favorite classic dish of gooey cheesy “mac” and cheese.
Here is a sweet way to enjoy spaghetti squash:
Our keto “coconut” crustless pie an easy and delicious spaghetti squash dessert recipe that tastes just like coconut pie! Perfect dessert for the holidays or anytime you’re craving coconut pie. Low carb and low calorie but high in rich flavors.
Ultimate Creamy Keto "Mac" and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 5 cup spaghetti squash cooked, one large squash
- 0.5 tsp ground mustard seed
- 1.5 cup unsweetened almond milk warmed
- 8 oz extra sharp white cheddar cheese grated
- 1.5 tbsp salted butter
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
- 0.5 tsp kosher salt
- 1/8 tsp cayenne red pepper ground
- 0.5 tbsp almond flour
- 1/8 tsp onion powder
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder
Optional Ingredients
- 1/8 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp fresh rosemary minced
- 1 tsp fresh thyme minced
- dash ground nutmeg
Instructions
Cook Spaghetti Squash
- preheat oven to 400 degrees. cut spaghetti squash in half and place on cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil
- remove seeds and ribbing with a spoon
- drizzle about 1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil inside the squash. Sprinkle with ground black pepper and salt. turn over the squash and place skin side up on baking sheet
- bake for 35 minutes and remove from oven
- scrape the strands of the squash with a fork and place in a bowl
Cheese Sauce
- While spaghetti squash is baking, Melt butter in a medium sized sauce pan over medium high heat and whisk in almond flour making a roux (paste)
- whisk in milk
- add in cream cheese and stir until melted
- add in all spices: ground mustard seed, white pepper, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, rosemary, thyme and nutmeg. Stir until well blended
- save about 1.5 cup of cheese. add remaining grated cheese to the sauce pan and whisk until completely melted
Baking Mac and Cheese
- add strands of spaghetti squash to sauce pan and stir until well blended
- fill the two empty skin halves of the squash with the cheesy mixture and sprinkle reserved grated cheese on top
- bake until the top cheese layer is crispy golden brown, about 15-20 minutes
- Serve warm and enjoy!
- Each serving has 8 g net carbs