Saturday, December 10, 2011

Cheddar Bacon Ranch Mac N Cheese

This is my first ever attempt at blogging.  Dun Dun Dun.
Anywho....this a blog about food. I do not claim to be a "good" cook but more often than not, the food I make is edible. It is sometimes downright delicious. 


It's friday night and I asked Matt (the hubby) what he wanted me to make for dinner. He said "how about a new kind of mac n cheese". Challenge accepted. 

I began searching the internet for a "unique" mac n cheese, but then I remembered that I had found a recipe on Pinterest for Chicken Bacon Ranch Mac N Cheese.  The recipe that I came up with is inspired by this dish but it uses ranch seasoning instead of a mix of onion and garlic powder and I left out the chicken completely.


 This is not a healthy or low-fat dish.  I promise that this blog will have healthy options too but this my friends is NOT one of them ;)


**After devouring a plate (or two), I began to wonder if the mac n cheese might be even better with the added moisture from the dressing. Hrm, maybe next time!**




Start by boiling 2 cups of elbow macaroni. Make sure to salt your water!


While the noodles are boiling (about 10 minutes), start by mixing together your sour cream, eggs, butter, salt, pepper and milk.


Mix it all up with a whisk. It wont be completely smooth because of the butter but that's okay!
 (At this stage I thought it looked an awful lot like I was about to make an omelette) Then add your ranch seasoning and mix it up a bit more.


Put your mixture aside. Remove the noodles from the heat and drain them. I put them right back into the pot I boiled them in! Now you get to add your cheese. I love cheese.


Mix the cheese in with the noodles and then add your mixture of eggs, sour cream etc. 

Stir it up!
Add your bacon!!


Mix everything together. Grease your casserole dish of choice. I used a 9x13 pyrex dish because that's what I had. I need to get my hands on a deep, square casserole dish because I find that mac n cheese is best when in a deep dish! (personal opinion but I'm sure someone agrees ;) )
Bake at 350 degrees for 25-35 mins. I added an extra sprinkling of cheddar cheese at 30 mins and then turned the broiler on for 2 mins. (this is completely optional step)





CHEDDAR BACON RANCH MAC N CHEESE
You will need:
2 cups elbow macaroni
dash of salt
dash of pepper
1/2 C. sour cream
1 C. milk (I used skim)
3 eggs
3 T. butter or margarine
1 packet Ranch seasoning
3 C. sharp cheddar cheese, grated.
1 (2.5 oz) package of bacon pieces 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. 

Fill a pot about 2/3 full of water and turn to high heat. Add a teaspoon of salt! When water reaches a rolling boil, add your elbow macaroni. Allow to cook for approximately ten mins.
In a separate bowl, mix together your sour cream, butter, eggs, salt, pepper and milk. Whisk together (mixture will not be completely smooth). Add ranch seasoning and whisk mixture together. 

When pasta is cooked, remove from heat and drain completely. Transfer the noodles back into your pot and add cheese. Mix the noodles and cheese together. Add your sour cream mixture to the noodles and cheese and stir together. Mix in the entire package of bacon pieces and stir everything together. 

Grease casserole dish. Pour your mac n cheese into dish and bake for 25-35 minutes! Allow to sit for five minutes before serving. 

ENJOY!

Rachel

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