Chipotle Mac and Cheese

Chipotle meets mac and cheese for the best combination of flavors that’s smokey, cheesy, and oh so flavorful! The crispy cheese on top and the velvety creamy cheese sauce inside will have you going for the next bite without putting your fork down. It’s the perfect fusion of flavors and with some chicken, this Mac and cheese is definitely a main, not side dish!

One of my favorite weeknight dinners to make is chipotle chicken! It’s absolutely delicious with rice or a salad but once when I was planning to make it, my husband was like what about a chipotle Mac and cheese. And it sounded too good not to make it so here we are!

Cooking the Pasta

For the pasta, we are using traditional macaroni! Of course, you can make macaroni and cheese with other shapes like cavatappi or penne but you can never go wrong with macaroni. Feel free to use the small or large shape of macaroni.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and add a whole package (1 pound) of pasta and cook to al dente. Do not overcook or else the macaroni and cheese will be very mushy.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain all the water and then I like to rinse with cold water to stop the pasta from continuing to cook.

Typically, I like the boil the pasta as I make the cheese sauce so that they’re both done at the same time!

Making the Cheese Sauce

Most macaroni and cheese recipes start with a roux which is a combination of butter and flour that can thicken up sauces to make a béchamel, and then a cheese sauce in this case.

Here are the steps:

1. Heat a saucepan or pot over medium heat. Add the butter. Once melted, whisk in the flour and cook 1 minute until it just starts to bubble and turns a yellow golden color.
2. Pour in the heavy cream slowly and whisk continuously until smooth. Then add the minced garlic, chili powder, paprika, black pepper, salt, cayenne powder, adobo paste, and cream cheese. Whisk together until smooth. Continue to cook the sauce for 3 to 4 minutes or until it thickens and just starts to bubble. Do not boil!
3. Take off the heat and immediately add the sharp cheddar cheese. Mix until completely melted, then add the colby jack and mix until completely combined in the sauce. Finally add the smoked gouda and mix one last time until there are no more clumps and the sauce is smooth. Taste and adjust anything to your liking.

For the cheese, these are the three that I like to use: sharp cheddar, Colby jack, and smoked gouda! The smoky taste of the gouda compliments the adobo sauce and smokey chipotle peppers so well. The sharp cheddar helps give it a beautiful deep orange color and the Colby jack melts really well and adds a mild creamy taste to balance the other two cheeses. Of course, feel free to swap out some cheeses with your favorites. For example, instead of Colby jack you can use Monterrey Jack. Instead of smoked gouda, you can use regular gouda or gruyere.

Assembling & Baking

After the cheese sauce and pasta are done, combine the two and mix together. Transfer to a large baking/casserole dish, or cast iron pan. Cover the top with more shredded cheese and pop in the oven to broil on the lowest rack for a few minutes just until golden brown and crispy on top. Watch it closely to make sure it doesn’t burn.

For the shredded cheese on top, I just use the same cheeses as I used in the sauce but mostly the cheddar and Colby jack with a sprinkle of gouda mixed together.

I like to add some chicken on top from this recipe and finish it off with a garnish of chopped cilantro and cotija cheese on top before enjoying!

OTHER RECIPES LIKE THIS TO TRY

• Honey Chipotle Criss-Cut Chicken
• Pizza Grilled Cheese
• Panera Mac and Cheese Copycat
• Cheesecake Factory Spicy Chipotle Chicken Pasta

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