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Skillet Mac, the ultimate comfort food.
I don’t know about all of you, but these past couple of months have been rough. There are good days. The ones that you wake up feeling optimistic and think about all the things you now have the time to do. And there are bad days. The ones where you want to just stay in bed until this is all over. We are all missing family, work, friends, the ability to go to a Starbucks and pick up a cappuccino with a couple of squirts of cinnamon dolce and wander the mall aimlessly buying items that you don’t even need. Well maybe that last one was just me…
It’s hard to live in limbo. This situation we are all in has really put a spot light on how much we all need our “people”, our friends, family, co-workers, our friendly waitress, our favorite barista, the friendly faces that we count on to help us through the hard times. I wish I can say this is all going to be over tomorrow. Or when you wake up this will all have been a bad dream. The only thing I can offer you is a little comfort in the form of an old friend.
Here is my skillet mac and cheese recipe. I hope it brings you a smile, as making it for you these past years brought me.
Skillet Mac and Cheese
The easiest mac and cheese ever! This is the base to all of the skillet macs we had at the cafe.Servings 4Ingredients
- 1/2 pound cavatapi pasta cooked
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 6 slices american cheese
- everyday seasoning to taste** a mix of kosher salt, pepper and granualated garlic.
Instructions
- Boil half a box of cavatapi pasta per box instructions. Gather you ingredients.
- In a large skillet, on medium heat pour in heavy cream. Add your cheeses and a good pinch of everyday season.
- Melt the cheese into the cream
- Add the cooked cavatapi
- Stir and let it get all bubbly. About 3-4 minutes
- And thats it!
Notes
I always have a mix of what I like to call “everyday seasoning” 1 cup kosher salt, 1/2 cup black pepper, 1/2 cup granulated garlic. Keep in a covered container I use it on meats, French fries, in my mac and cheese… For a gluten free version : use gluten free pasta. Instead of heavy cream use half and half and thicken it with a slurry. 2 cups of half and half, add your cheeses and everyday seasoning, melt the cheese (it will be a little runny) then in a small bowl mix another 1/4 cup of half in half with a couple of teaspoons of corn starch. Add to cheese sauce it will thicken and then add pasta. The Buffalo chicken Mac: Add a pounded breaded chicken breast fried crispy, slice top with buffalo sauce and a sprinkle of gorgonzola cheese. The Pulled pork Mac: Add bbq pulled pork and a topping of buttered panko. The Philly Mac: on a griddle or large skillet cook up thinly sliced rib eye (sometimes you can find this in the meat section, if not ask your butcher to slice some up. We did it in house at the cafe), peppers and onions, everyday seasoning. Top it with buttered panko. The JR Mac: Add pickled jalapeños and chopped cooked bacon to the Mac and cheese. Top with a pounded breaded chicken breast fried crispy. Drizzle with bbq sauce. The Mexi Mac: switch out cheddar for pepper jack, add a little more peppers to the Mac. Top with grilled seasoned chicken breast and tri colored tortilla strips The Kendell Mac: add chopped bacon and baby spinach (fresh) to your Mac. Top with pounded breaded chicken breast fried crispy. Drizzle with ranch. The Cordon blue Mac: Add chopped ham and a spoonful of dijon mustard to the Mac. Top with a pounded breaded chicken breast fried crispy. Drizzle with honey mustard. -
Creamy chicken and rice soup
I am always up for a nice pot of home made soup and this was one of our top sellers we would sell out almost every time we had it at the cafe. This is also one of my family faves. It is also a great way to sneak in some healthy grains for picky eaters like my husband.
I almost hesitated putting this on the blog today, because as I sit writing this recipe up it is a beautiful 61 degrees with the sun shining and the breeze from the bay coming in, and I am fully enjoying the weather out on my front porch. But tomorrow is another day of rain and cooler temps and I think everyone can use a meal that feels like a warm hug right now.
So here is my social distanced hug to all of you! Enjoy!
Creamy Chicken and rice soup
Simple and easy, but so comforting.Servings 6Ingredients
Soup
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter you can use half butter and half olive oil
- 1 med white onion diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 2 med carrots diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tsp dry thyme
- 1/4 cup flour
- 8 cups chicken stock broth, or water with boullion or base is ok too
- 1 pound roasted chicken breast shredded
- 2 cups cooked wild rice
- 1 cup half and half
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
roasted chicken breast
- 1 pound chicken breast 2 medium sized
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Wild Rice or other hearty grain
- 2 cups boiling water
- 1 cup wild rice mix (or any hearty grain mix)
Instructions
- Start with your chicken breast and wild rice or grain mix. Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.Place your chicken breast on a sheet tray, drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 45 minutes until cooked through 165 degrees, set aside to cool and shred.
- Boil water in a small oven proof pot, add your wild rice or grain mix. Bring back to a boil and cover. Place into 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Remove and set aside until needed for soup.
- In a large pot, over medium heat melt butter. Add your veggies, salt and pepper and thyme. Cook for about 4 minutes.
- Add flour, stir and cook for another 30 second
- slowly add in your chicken stock and stir well to ensure there are no lumps. Let simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Add shredded chicken and rice or grain mixture and let cook simmer for another 15 minutes or so.
- At this point, check the soup for seasoning and desired thickness. Re season if necessary. Finish with half and half and parsley. **see recipe notes for gluten free option** If you would like your soup a little thicker mix in a tablespoon of corn starch to your half and half and stir that into the soup.
Notes
To make this gluten free, remove the flour. Make the soup and when you get to the part of re seasoning, you can mix a couple of table spoons of corn starch with your half and half. Bring soup back up to a boil and re asses your thickness then. You can always add a little more corn starch mixed with water or stock to the soup. I used a grain mixture this time, I like to make sure the grains I use are hearty and can stand up in the soup. I don’t like it when the grains absorb too much of the liquid.
