Mac and Cheese 2.0

Star Q

i.  Sesi Profesionalisme SISC

ii.  Majlis Perpisahan

iii.  Disebalik Tabir Hari Guru

I purposely call this dish Mac and Cheese 2.0 because the macaroni had been used to prepare two different types of dishes.  The first dish was where the macaroni was fried ala Malaysiana.  My wife had actually boiled a lot more macaroni than she wanted to use, so she kept the rest in the fridge.

That's where 2.0 came.  One when the leftover macaroni was used to prepare another dish and the second reason is for my pumped version of mac and cheese, which did not really rely on cheese alone.  I made my mac and cheese more substantial by adding chicken and vegetables.  And in doing so I sort of reduced the amount of calories in my mac and cheese when I reduced the amount of cheese.

To my surprise, even the leftover macaroni had leftovers which I kept in the freezer.  The first batch I took to the office.  Another surprise was when my colleagues actually liked my mac and cheese 2.0!

• 5 cups cooked macaroni
• 1 cup cooked diced chicken
• 1 cup mixed vegetables
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp chicken stock granules
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tbs butter
• 1 tin of 420 g cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup grated cheddar

Heat the butter in a pan and saute the onion and garlic until aromatic.  Stir in the chicken, mixed vegetables, chicken stock granules, pepper and water and simmer until most of the moisture has evaporated.  Dish out and set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 180 C.  Meanwhile prepare the soup according to the instructions on the label.  However, you only need to add half a can of water for this recipe.  Bring to the boil and stir in the shredded mozzarella.  Turn off the heat.  Once all the shredded mozzarella has melted into the soup, stir in the macaroni mixture.  Tip this mixture into a casserole and scatter the shredded cheddar on top.  Bake for about 35 minutes or until top is golden brown.  Serve hot or warm.