I know I haven't blogged in awhile, but I'm back and I've got a great recipe for you! You know how much I love Mac N' Cheese, not only to eat, but to make. There are so many flavor combinations you can do with it and this version may very well be my favorite Mac N' Cheese I've ever made. The flavors of this recipe are so complex and delicious and yet, it's so simple to make! It's loosely based on one of my dad's chili recipes. Here's what I did...
-rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken, shredded (about 3 cups)
-5 medium to large tomatillos
-1 small can of diced green chilies
-about 1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded
-about 1 cup of Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded
-3 to 4 scallions, finely diced
-a handful of cilantro, chopped
-1/2 lb of short cut pasta (penne or rigatoni)
-2 TBS butter
-2 TBS flour
-1 1/2 cups of warmed milk
-2 tsp ground coriander
-about 1/2 cup of crushed tortilla chips
-salt and pepper
This is what a tomatillo looks like before peeling off the husk. They have a pretty tart flavor so roasting them helps to balance out the tartness.
This is a standard bechamel sauce. The typical flavors of a regular bechamel sauce is salt, pepper and nutmeg, but I used coriander here to compliment the other Mexican flavors.
This is the cheese sauce with the roasted tomatillos and green chilies.
Preheat the oven to 375. Spray a casserole dish with Pam and set aside. Peel the husks off of the tomatillos and rinse them with water. (Even after rinsing they will feel slightly sticky and have a funny smell, but as long as they are a bright green color they are good.) Place them on a cookie sheet, drizzle them with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast them until golden brown about 10 minutes. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, then chop finely. Meanwhile, place a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Cook pasta for about 7-8 minutes (the pasta will continue to cook in the oven). Drain and put the pasta back into the pot, off of the heat. While the pasta is cooking, preheat a medium saute pan over medium heat. Melt the butter and sprinkle in the flour, whisking to combine. Let the mixture cook about 1 minute and then slowly pour in the milk, whisking continuously. Allow the milk to thicken about 5 minutes, whisking frequently. (The consistency should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.) Season with coriander, salt and pepper to taste. Turn the heat to low and with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, stir in a small handful of cheese at a time. Once all of the cheese is melted into the white sauce, stir in the chopped tomatillos and diced green chilies. Add the chopped scallions, cilantro and shredded chicken to the pot of pasta and pour the cheese sauce over it. Stir to combine the ingredients evenly. Pour the mac n' cheese into the prepared pan and sprinkle the top with the crushed chips. Place into the oven and cook until the chips are golden brown about 10-15 minutes. Serve immediately.
This Mac N' Cheese is so flavorful and has a little heat to it, but if you want to kick it up a notch, you can add some diced pickled jalapenos to the mix. I really hope you try this out because I think you will love it!
When I was younger, I always wanted my mom to make Manicotti for my birthday. Now that I'm older, I realize what a pain in the butt it must have been! That's why moms are the best, right? :) She made it for me because she knew I loved it and never let on how much work it was to make. I will have to return the favor and make this recipe for her one day! :) This one is a lot easier to make because I used large shells instead of the Manicotti tubes. Here's what I did...
For the filling:
-15 oz whole milk ricotta cheese
-10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
-3 oz prosciutto, thinly sliced
-1/3 cup of grated parmesan
-4 to 5 large basil leaves, thinly sliced
-a small handful of parsley, chopped
-1/4 tsp of grated or ground nutmeg
-the zest and juice of 1 lemon
-salt and pepper to taste
Other ingredients:
-large shells (allow 4 per person)
-red sauce of your choice
-a ball of mozzarella, thinly sliced (use a serrated knife, it works better)
-grated parmesan
-2 TBS butter
-2 TBS flour
-1 1/2 cups of warmed milk
-1/4 tsp nutmeg
-salt and pepper to taste
*This recipe has 2 sauces: a white sauce (AKA bechamel) and a red sauce. If you don't have time to make the white sauce, go ahead and leave it out. But I do recommend trying this with the white sauce because it does add a richness to the dish.
Preheat the oven to 375. Grease a large casserole dish with Pam and set aside. In a large stock pot, bring the water to a boil for the pasta. Cook the pasta 5-6 minutes, drain and let cool. (You only want to cook the pasta halfway because it will continue cooking in the oven. Also, when you drain the pasta and let it cool, do NOT rinse the pasta off with cold water. This will wash away the starch and your sauce will have nothing to stick to.) Meanwhile, add all of the filling ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Set aside. In medium non-stick saute pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Let the flour and butter cook for 1 minute. Slowly pour in the milk, whisking continuously. Allow the sauce to come up to a bubble over medium heat, whisking often. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. If the mixture becomes too thick, add a little more milk. Turn off the heat and stir in a generous handful of parmesan cheese. Pour the sauce into the prepared casserole dish. When the shells have cooled, begin stuffing them with about a tablespoon of mixture or until the shell is filled. As you fill them, place them into the casserole dish on top of the bechamel sauce. Once you fill the casserole dish, pour the red sauce evenly over the stuffed shells. Top with the sliced mozzarella and some parmesan. Place in the oven and cook for 10-12 minutes. After that, turn on the broiler and brown the cheese for 3-5 minutes. Serve immediately.
I can see this recipe turning into one of our favorites. It's simple to put together, but looks like it took all day to make. It's rich and full of flavor and best of all, full of cheese! :) You can definitely play around with the flavors, though. Try sausage, arugula (a leafy green with a pepper-y taste), and sauteed onions or spinach and artichoke with the ricotta cheese. I would love to hear any flavor combination that you try! Enjoy!
