My Own Mac & Cheese

This dish came about because I was craving a baked macaroni & cheese dish.  Now, I’m not crazy about boxed mac & cheese, so I knew it had to be something different than just elbow macaroni + cheddar cheese. Plus, I wanted it to be a complete meal instead of just a side dish. I looked up several recipes on allrecipes.com to get an idea of the ingredients & instructions for making homemade mac & cheese.  So, this was the end result, and I know the pictures are TERRIBLE, but it may just have been my most brilliant kitchen moment….

I didn’t write down the exact ingredient amounts, but it went something like this:

Christen’s Mac & Cheese

First, I boiled two cups of elbow macaroni.  While that was going, I started the cheese sauce.  In a skillet, I melted 4 tbsp of butter, then added ~ 3/4 c fat free evaporated milk & 2 c shredded cheese (and I didn’t have much to work with, so I ended up using a combination of dairy-free cheddar, Colby-Jack, & Italian 5-cheese).   When the macaroni was finished, I drained it and added it to the cheese sauce, and then added 1 small package frozen broccoli florets, thawed, & about 9 slices of pre-cooked Canadian bacon, cut in to small pieces.  Salt & pepper to taste.  Then I put it all into a square casserole dish, topped with Italian panko bread crumbs and sprinkled a bit more shredded cheese on top.  I baked at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

It was SO GOOD! Brent liked it, even though it wasn’t just exactly like Thelma’s. It did need a bit more salt, but I think it was one of the best things I have ever made – and definitely the best recipe I have ever created!

The only downside was that I ate two servings, drank one glass of white wine, and then went to the hardest Zumba class of my life. Just  a little sickening!  But I’ll definitely make it again!!!