Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
Jalapenos, hot sauce, bacon, and chicken come together to make delicious Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese. An extra special dinner!
Servings 6 servings
Calories 965kcal
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon
- 2 tablespoons bacon grease reserved from said bacon
- 1/2 large onion diced, about 1 1/4 cups
- 2 jalapenos sliced, ribs and seeds removed
- 1 pound elbow macaroni
for the sauce-
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 5 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 cups milk whole or 2% please
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- 2 ounces cream cheese
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce such as Frank’s Red Hot
- 2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese grated
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese grated
- 1/4 cup provolone grated
- 1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles
- 1 cup precooked and shredded chicken optional
for the topping-
- 1 cup corn flakes crushed
- 1/3 cup blue cheese crumbles
- cooked bacon as listed above
- parsley for garnish
Instructions
- In a large skillet, cook bacon until crispy. Remove from pan, drain on paper towels and crumble. Pour off excess bacon drippings, keeping 2 tablespoons in the pan. Place skillet back on heat and saute onion and jalapenos until soft, about 6 minutes over medium heat. Set aside.
- Bring large pot of water to boil. Salt water generously and cook pasta 2 minutes short of package directions. You want the macaroni to be very al dente, but not still crunchy. Drain and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In the same pot, melt butter over medium heat. whisk in flour and cook 1-2 minutes. Whisk in milk, cream, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Increase heat to medium high and continue mixing until sauce thickens. Remove from heat.
- Stir in cream cheese and hot sauce until melted smoothly into the sauce. Pour cooked pasta and sauteed onions and jalapenos into the sauce. Stir to coat. Stir in cheeses and chicken.
- Pour into a buttered baking dish {9×9, 9×13, or somewhere in between should be good} and spread out evenly. Top with blue cheese, corn flakes and crumbled bacon.
- Bake 20-30 minutes until top of macaroni has browned. Remove from oven, top with parsley and serve hot.
Nutrition
Calories: 965kcal | Carbohydrates: 73g | Protein: 40g | Fat: 57g | Saturated Fat: 31g | Cholesterol: 158mg | Sodium: 990mg | Potassium: 507mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 1544IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 675mg | Iron: 3mg