Here’s my advice. Run, don’t walk to your kitchen and make this right now. Go.
I found this recipe in The Family Circle, December 2010 issue and it is incredible. Dave and I were almost fighting over who would get the leftovers for lunch the next day (Dave was a true sport and let me have it). I made a few changes in italics. This was an incredibly easy meal, ready in minutes!
Ingredients-
- 4 slices thick bacon
- 1 package Kraft Homestlye Deluxe Old World Italian Mac and Cheese dinner w/ Parmesan and Romano Cheese Sauce (this must be new I’d never seen it before, but when I sent Dave to the store for it, he came home with it… so there you go)
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 cups frozen sliced carrots
- 1 and 1/2 cups diced rotisserie chicken
- 1/4 cup plain bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 Tbl butter, melted
Directions-
- Heat oven to 375. Remove bread crumb topping from Mac and Cheese dinner; save for another time.
- I didn’t have a rotisserie chicken on hand, so I cooked 4 pieces of bacon in a pan on the stove. I made them pretty crispy. Once done I removed and placed on a plate lined with paper towel. I then took about 2 cups of diced chicken and cooked them in the bacon oil over medium-high heat; set aside.
- In a large pan boil 6 cups of water, stir in macaroni and cook for about 7 minutes. Drain.
- In a medium bowl, combine contents of cheese sauce pouch, cream cheese, milk, garlic salt, and pepper. Microwave for about 2 minutes, stirring every 20 seconds or so, till sauce is smooth.
- In large bowl, combine macaroni, carrots (I didn’t have frozen carrots so I omitted these), and chicken. Crumble up the bacon into little bits and add that too. Fold in the sauce, stir well. Transfer to 2 quart casserole dish.
- In a small bowl, stir together bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and melted butter; sprinkle over top. I also added some Panko bread crumbs because they make it better.
- Bake for 20 – 25 min. or till golden and bubbling.
