Bacon Mac and Cheese

Here's the next in my series of mac and cheese recipe. I was looking for inspiration and noticed some recipes with bacon in them. I also decided to change up the cheese a little and did a combination of swiss and cheddar. It was definitely a good idea. When I went to make dinner I realized of all things I forgot to buy macaroni! I did have some pasta wheels in the pantry so I thought I'd try those. It was actually a good mistake because I loved how the cheese filled up the little holes in the pasta. Yum-o! We had this with breaded pork chops and some roasted green beans. It was a comfort food feast.

Italian Mac-n-Cheese

The next in my series of mac and cheese recipes, I've yet to find someone who doesn't love this when they try it. It is sooo yummy! It satisfies so many cravings: cravings for mac and cheese, comfort food, Italian food. The best part - it's a 30 minute meal! Everything is cooked before hand and all you need to do is pop it under the broiler to brown it. Another great thing about this recipe is that it freezes very well. You should definitely make a double batch and pop one in the freezer. This was one of the recipes I froze during my last pregnancy so that we had home cooked meals when the baby came home. It was delicious and might taste even better than the first day. I have to thank Rachael Ray for yet another yummy but quick and easy meal.

Spring Shells and Cheese

As promised here is another macaroni and cheese recipe. This was one of five recipes included in an article about mac and cheese in Food Network Magazine. It's also where I got the recipe for Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese. I like dishes like this one with the veggies in it. It's one less thing to worry about when making dinner. This was pretty yummy and pretty easy. The flavor reminded me of a vegetable lasagna. The only problem for me was when I shredded the zucchini in my Cuisinart and then couldn't get the lid off. My zucchini was stuck until my husband could get home and work his handyman magic on it. We ended up having to wait till the next day for our mac and cheese. Anyway, it was worth the wait and it went great with some grilled pork chops that I had marinated (for over a day at that point) in McCormick Grill Mates Garlic Herb & Wine marinade. The whole family loved it and, even though my kids are pretty good with their veggies, this was a great way to get some in them.

Buffalo-Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

When I was writing my Fried Chicken post, I mentioned my constant quest for yummy mac and cheese recipes. I think I laughed out loud when later that day I opened my new Food Network Magazine (April 2010) and saw that there was an article on just that. When I turned to the recipes and saw this one I knew right away I had to make it. I like buffalo chicken dishes occasionally, but my husband and son LOVE them. I discovered that even my 22 month old daughter does too. She devoured this buffalo chicken dip that I made for Superbowl this year. Anyway, I thought this sounded pretty good. Well, it was delicious! The sour cream gave an incredible texture and left me thinking that I need to be putting sour cream in all of my mac and cheese. One thing I left out was the blue cheese on top. We are just not huge fans and honestly I don't fell like it was missed.  Even though we're not normally blue cheese fans, the blue cheese makes this recipe delicious! The original recipe calls for using a store-bought rotisserie chicken but I just poached some chicken breasts instead. Be careful with this one. You're going to want to eat it all. (Look for more mac-and-cheese recipes to come - I think it will be a series)