Recipe
Yes, You Can Eat Mac n' Cheese for Every Meal
Mac n' cheese is awesome. In the cold weather months of New England, I can never find anything that warms me up faster than a bowl of mac n' cheese. And I'm not talking about microwavable mac that just about every college kid keeps in their dorm room. I'm talking about the from-scratch stuff that makes you melt just as much as that luscious cheese.
If you are like me, then you've wondered "is it possible to eat mac n' cheese for EVERY meal?"
The answer is YES, and here is how.
The Pasta
All of these recipes call for "cooked macaroni." By this, I mean boil 1/2 box of your favorite mac and cheese pasta (I used elbow macaroni) according to the box instructions. Salt the pasta water for every recipe (except the dessert!).
Drain the pasta when it is still al dente (or ALMOST fully cooked but still has some texture to it) and set it aside until the recipe calls for it. (And feel free to adjust all measurements based on how many servings you want to make. The following servings are a ROUGH estimate.)
Breakfast: Bacon, Egg, & Mac n' Cheese
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Servings: 3
Ingredients
- Cooked macaroni
- 1/4 onion diced
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup milk
- Bacon diced
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup or 1/2 16oz bag shredded cheddar cheese
- Salt and black pepper to taste
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Lunch: BBQ Pulled Pork Mac n' Cheese Sliders
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Black pepper to taste
- Cooked macaroni
- 4 cups BBQ sauce-drenched pulled pork store bought or homemade
- 2 cups Coleslaw store bought or homemade
- Brioche slider rolls
- TIP: This recipe is a great way to use up your holiday-weekend BBQ leftovers!
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BONUS! Lunch #2: Grilled Mac n' Cheese with Ham
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 25 mins
- Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 8 slices sourdough bread
- 8 slices your favorite ham
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- salt and black pepper to taste
- cooked macaroni
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Dinner: Mexican Stuffed Pepper Mac n' Cheese
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 35 mins
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Servings: 4
Ingredients
- Cooked macaroni
- 1/4 onion diced
- 3 tbsp. butter
- 2 tbsp. flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 and 1/4 cup shredded Mexican four cheese blend
- 2 tsp. cumin
- 2 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- salt to taste
- 1/2 can black beans drained
- 1-2 chicken breasts shredded: I like to use rotisserie chickens because they are easier
- 4 bell peppers
- sour cream optional
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**TIP: Add some finely diced jalapeno for a little extra kick!
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**Note: The spice measurements here are lenient. Start with the measurements given here, then add to it based on how much of a kick you want it to have. Go crazy or keep it tame, whatever works for you!
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Serve warm, topped with sour cream.
Dessert: Strawberry Mac n' Cheesecake
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 2 tbsp. flour
- one 8oz brick cream cheese
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 beaten egg
- cooked macaroni
- 1 cup frozen strawberries mashed with 2 tbsp sugar
- 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
- crushed graham crackers: as much as you want we used 2 whole crackers
- fresh strawberries optional
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**Note: This step will start out very thick as pictured. Keep stirring until the cream cheese is mostly melted, and I promise everything will be okay.
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OMG ANOTHER BONUS!!
Snacks:
Put your leftover mac n' cheese (if you have any) into muffin tins. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Now you have a portable, mac n' cheese snack to comfort you with velvety-cheesy goodness on the go!
I hope I have inspired the adventurous mac and cheese lover in you to indulge in comforting cheesy goodness as often as you can! PS- my favorite recipe is dessert!