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One of the most comforting foods on the planet is Mac and Cheese, in this recipe you can add a bit a variety to this American Classic:)
Start off by choosing your favorite pasta (mine is a classic penne, can you blame me?) and cooking to package specifications. *Note: try to use one brand of pasta so that you can have streamlined cooking times and expected textures.
For the chicken, this recipe uses frozen boneless chicken wings, but you are free to make your own version, using homemade chicken, crispy tofu, or without meat altogether. Maybe we’ll do a recipe on homemade chicken tenders/boneless wings in the next article:)
Pop those frozen boneless chicken wings into the oven or airfryer and cook to package specifications.
While those are cooking, you’ll next want to turn your attention to the star of the show: the cheese sauce.
Now, there are several ways you can do this, I will just tell you how I did it and you can tweak this recipe to your hearts content.
To start, you want to build out a good roux. Begin by melting down some butter, adding in a bit of garlic and/or garlic powder, and some black pepper. Once that is all set, add in a bit of flour and mix.
Be careful here, you want to not only mix well, but also be sure not to burn your roux, because this is the base of the recipe, and if you burn it here, that bitter flavor will permeate your entire dish.
Next, I melted down some American cheese, triple cheddar and mozzarella and stirred continuously. But again, you can use whatever cheese you want (be sure to test these flavors because not all cheeses belong together).
Once this is all together we’re going to finish up by adding in some milk (I recommend vegetable stock or plant free milk substitutes that are non-nut based if you are looking for a vegetarian/vegan alternative). The amount of milk you use will change the texture from a thicker, stickier sauce to a thinner runnier sauce, so use your judgement here and stop a little bit before you think you are there.
As you add in your milk, whisk continuously to break up any chunks, and keep your heat low. If you heat it up too fast, it will seize and give you a grainy sauce*. Its not inedible, but it is considerably less pretty, so be careful of that.
It is around here that you will want to add in your favorite honey and barbecue sauces. You could also use a honey bbq sauce or (like me) a honey mustard sauce and a bbq sauce. If that’s a bit too plain, feel free to add in a bit of your favorite hot sauce for a little kick!
By now your sauce is 🤌🏼and your noodles and boneless wings are done. It’s time to plate up!
I used plain boneless wings, but I’m sure you know by now that I am all good with substituting 🙂 so let your creativity fly and create the amazing meal I know you can!
Tips and Tricks:
Please be sure to cook to package specifications for all items that you didn’t prepare (unless you made your own chicken tenders and noodles, then you do you 👑).
If your cheese sauce comes out grainy or gritty it could be due to a few things.
- 1: your sauce was too hot while you were incorporating ingredients
- 2: you did not add in enough liquid material as you were incorporating ingredients
Either way, I’m sure its delicious and you’ll get it next time 🙂
Now, on to the recipe!
Recipe:
1 cup of penne pasta
1 serving of boneless chicken wings
1-2 slices of American Cheese
1/4 cup of shredded triple cheddar cheese
1/4 cup of mozzarella cheese
1-2 tablespoons of bbq sauce
1-2 tablespoons of honey/honey mustard sauce
3/4-1 cup of milk
seasoning to taste
🍝
Time: 20 mins
Type: quick meal
😋
