Buffalo Mac and Cheese

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

I promised myself when I started this I wouldn't just use other people's recipes and share them all the time - so far, so good. But then, Jennifer found this recipe for Buffalo Mac and Cheese over at Table for Two, which you should go check out. I hadn't seen it until she showed me this recipe - good stuff. Anyway, she wanted to cook it for me - and it ain't bad! She knows that I constantly joke to people that I'm a connoisseur of both Shrimp n Grits and Mac n Cheese. She also knows that I'm probably really not joking so much. But this is great stuff - a combination of a southern classic and something good and spicy? Hard to beat. And seriously, check out Table for Two.

Helping Jennifer instead of running everything in the kitchen really took some work. But it was great and she did a bang-up job. First, you cook the chicken with garlic and hot sauce, then you start creating the roux - which also includes hot sauce. And ALL the cheese. The only thing that could make that better would be incorporating panko bread crumbs and blue cheese into the recipe. So they did. And I'm thankful. It's not as rich as you would think - meaty, hearty, and cheesy. It works great as a meal by itself. I definitely used extra hot sauce, so milk was *fantastic* with it. Let me know what you think, or share if you think you have a better recipe!

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

INGREDIENTS:

6 tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
Salt, to taste
1/2 pound elbow macaroni
1 1/2 cups pulled chicken
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 cup Frank’s hot sauce, divided
2 tbsp. flour
1 tsp. dry mustard powder
1 cup milk (we used skim)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup crumbled bleu cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a large casserole dish.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, season with salt, and add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain and set aside.

In the meantime, in a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tbsp. of butter and stir in the chicken and garlic. Cook for a couple minutes then add 1/4 cup of the hot sauce and mix it all together until well combined. Put the chicken mixture in a bowl and set aside. Quickly rinse out your skillet and return to stove.

Melt 2 tbsp. butter in the skillet over medium heat and whisk in the flour and mustard powder until smooth. Then whisk in the milk and cream and add the remaining 1/2 cup of hot sauce and stir until thick. Whisk in the cheddar and pepper jack cheese until melted and smooth then whisk in the sour cream until all combined.

In the prepared baking dish, spread half of the macaroni in the bottom of the dish then top with the buffalo chicken mixture and then the remaining macaroni. Pour the cheese sauce evenly on top.

Put the remaining 2 tbsp. of butter in a small bowl in the microwave to melt. Stir in the panko and bleu cheese then sprinkle over the macaroni.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until bubbly. Let rest 10-15 minutes before serving.