Welcome to Homemaking Tips Tuesdays where contributing writers share helpful homemaking tips so you can feel more successful caring for your home and family.

{This week, post by: Jaimi}

Turning the clocks back, Fall weather, and pumpkin spice all go together in perfect harmony. This time of year we are planning for the holidays, and seeking out new recipes to jazz up our normal meal plan. If your kids love macaroni and cheese, this pumpkin turkey mac and cheese will get vegetables into your kids’ bellies without them noticing!

The fun orange color and yummy spices make this a very satisfying dish. Plus, if you are looking for recipes to save for Thanksgiving leftovers, keep this one handy!

Pumpkin Turkey Mac and Cheese was created in a last-minute dash to come up with a meal fast. I had to get creative with what I had in the fridge and freezer to try to clean out some leftovers before family arrived in town.

It was a busy week already, so I did not do my best with meal planning for the week!

I just happened to have frozen pumpkin puree, leftover noodles, and a package of ground turkey in the freezer. The sauce is made like any traditional macaroni and cheese recipe, but I add a couple special ingredients that made it divine.

Even the kids ate it! You know my kids are champs at being picky eaters when there are veggies on their plate, but this pumpkin turkey mac and cheese they all liked.

Recipe for Pumpkin Turkey Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

[Noodle mixture]

2 C cooked noodles (or spaetzle)

1 C pumpkin puree

1 lb. ground turkey (or shredded turkey from Thanksgiving leftovers)

[Spices]

½ t salt

½ t ground black pepper

¼ t Ground cinnamon or 4 drops Cinnamon Vitality

4 drops Nutmeg Vitality

[Sauce]

2T flour

2T butter

12 ounces milk

2C shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly grease a 2 quart casserole dish.

Saute turkey (if using raw, ground), or shred turkey if using cooked leftovers.

Combine noodles, pumpkin and turkey in casserole dish.

Add spices and essential oils. Mix together.

Make sauce:

Melt butter over medium heat and whisk in flour to combine. Cook for a minute while whisking, then slowly pour in milk, whisking constantly.

Boil sauce for 1 minute to thicken it slightly.

Remove from heat and pour in 1 ½ C cheese. Stir well.

Pour into casserole. Mix all together well.

Top with remaining cheese and bake for 35 minutes until cheese is slightly browned. Serve.

This mac and cheese takes a traditional recipe and gives it a Fall spin. Essential oils do not expire, and when you purchase from Young Living, they are guaranteed to be pure. Young LIving has an entire line of Vitality oils that are for using in recipes.

I love exploring how to use essential oils in recipes because they do not expire like dry spices do, so you get the same flavor boost on day one as you will months down the road. That makes my dollars last longer.

I recently shared a whole collection of holiday themed recipes in a Facebook class all about using essential oils in cooking. You can check it out and grab even more recipes for the holidays.