Baked Avocado Macaroni and Cheese

My son is a lightweight. To the point where the doctor really wants us to pack the pounds on him, which is basically an impossible task. He has the metabolism of his father. It took John turning 30 before he could gain weight, so I figure this is likely just how Landon is. But in the meantime I am really actively trying to give him the healthiest but most calorie dense food options available. At the same time as we try to put the pounds on him we are dealing with multiple food allergies- egg, soy (which we knew), and peanuts. So food has been a bit of an obstacle while we try to figure out how to make him gain weight while simultaneously preventing him from reacting to foods. It's a journey and I am so thankful that I cook. I can't even imagine embarking on this food allergy/weight gaining mission without the knowledge of kitchen basics.

With that said, let's get to this macaroni and cheese. I recently discovered that Landon loves avocado. He had never been exposed to it at home because John and I are both not fans but he had some out at a restaurant and he was hooked. I've been trying to find ways to get avocado into him since it's healthy and fattening. I decided to combine it with his favorite macaroni and cheese recipe and next thing you know we had a winner. Landon ate a ton of this. It really doesn't hold up well for long because the avocado turns brown, but I kept it for 2 days after baking and even though it got a little brown the parts that were buried in the noodles held up well. I have already made and remade this 3 times in the past 2 weeks for Landon!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
2 cups milk
1 cup small pasta (ditalini, mini shells, mini egg noodles, etc.)
Salt and pepper
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp onion powder
1 heaping cup cheese, any kind (I used sharp cheddar)
1 avocado, chopped

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- Put the milk, pasta, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder in a small sauce pot. Heat over low-medium heat. DO NOT LET IT BOIL.
3- Cook until the milk is almost all absorbed, about 20 minutes. Stir in the cheese and stir well.
4- Gently fold in the avocado. Transfer to an oven safe dish and bake about 15-20 minutes.