Tailgating Recipes: Mac and Cheese with Chicken

by nixforsix on December 2, 2008

in tailgating recipes


From the Buffalo News via Cooking For a Cause a recipe for preparing a meaty mac and cheese. Bring it in a warm casserole holder or reheat it up on the grill to get the cheese melting again.

Ultimate Tailgating Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:
3 lb. elbow macaroni, cooked al dente
2 pound loaf Velveeta
Meat from 1 cooked chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
4 c. chopped onion
8 oz. blue cheese
4 oz. (1 stick) butter
2 c. milk
1/2 c. cayenne pepper hot sauce, like Frank’s
1 lb. sharp cheddar, shredded
2 c. celery, sliced thin
1 c. plain yogurt

Directions:
1. Cook macaroni al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking. Skin chicken and strip meat, tearing it into bite-sized chunks.

2. In large pot, melt butter. When foaming stops, add onions. Cook over high heat, stirring frequently, until translucent and browning, 10 to 15 minutes. Do not allow to burn.

3. Add hot sauce, stirring until sauce evaporates into onions, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium.

4. Add milk, yogurt and Velveeta torn in chunks. Stir steadily as Velveeta melts into liquid. (Do not allow to boil, or it will burn on the bottom of the pot.)

5. Set oven to 500°.* Spread cooked macaroni in standard half-sheet sized foil catering pan. Scatter celery and chicken over the macaroni, and crush blue cheese to spread across the mixture. Add cheese sauce and stir to combine everything evenly. Smooth out the mixture.

6. Top with shredded cheddar and place pan in preheated oven. Bake until brown and bubbly, 20 to 30 minutes. Can be covered with heavy foil and kept warm in a cooler, stuffed with crumpled newspaper as insulation, for up to four hours.

* This sounds like a very hot oven! You may want to bake it at 450 or lower.

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