Mexican Mac and Cheese Cups.
Hellllooooo?
Anyone still out there? I thought maybe you ate yourself out of house and home with some s’mores jar cakes. I know I did. Good thing my real house isn’t made out of s’mores. Though that would be delicious. And fattening. Sticky too. And easy to huff and puff and blow down.
So… we have a little bit of mac and cheese here today. Allow me to tell you about it. After all, I do believe that I can speak with authority on the cheesy subject.
But first, two things of utter importance:
I realllllly hope that Water for Elephants is as good as the book. Movies never are. If it isn’t I might die. Or just… emotionally eat a lot of buttery popcorn out of a grease-stained bag or something. Sheesh.
All this mac and cheese stuff has me reminded of Mother Lovett and her delicious heart attack inducing casserole that she made each holiday. Her cheese sauce was perfect and whole wheat noodles were merely a blip on the radar… if she even knew what they were in the first place. Butter and flour were staples. She washed her hair in the sink, then pinned it up with old-fashioned pink rollers. She once used lip liner to pencil on her eyebrows. Mauve lipliner. She wore girdles. She spent a large chunk of our wedding reception trying fix her girdle and not reveal Victoria’s real secret to the world. True story.
But girdles and mac and cheese? Don’t go together. Noodles and cheese and peppers and onions and cumin and chicken and other stuff? Do go together. Try it. I beg of you.
Baked in individually portioned ramekins, this creamy and gooey mac and cheese is laced with shredded chicken and other taco-like ingredients, such as red onions and green peppers. It has a crusty, crunchy topping that lies gently over some burnt, bubbly brown cheese. Which is the best kind of cheese, in case you were wondering.
Eat
up.
Yes.
Mexican Mac and Cheese Cups
makes 6 ramekins (3 inches wide x 2 inches tall)
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 cups dry whole wheat elbow noodles
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup corn (frozen is fine, just thaw and dry)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups milk
1 cup grated monterey jack cheese
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
salt and pepper
fresh cilantro for garnish
The quickest and easiest way to make this is by using pre-cooked chicken, so cook your chicken however you like – grill, bake, broil, boil – and shred it. I also think this would work with very lean ground beef (to reduce the grease). Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare pasta water, bring to a boil, and cook noodles.
While noodles are cooking, heat a skillet on medium heat and add olive oil. Add onions and peppers and saute until soft, about 5-6 minutes. Add garlic and corn and cook for another minute. Add shredded chicken and cumin, chili and cayenne, mixing to combine. Turn heat down to low. [Whenever pasta is done, just make sure to drain it and add it to the chicken/pepper mix.]
Heat a small saucepan on medium heat and add butter. Once butter is sizzling, add flour and whisk to create a roux. Cook flour mixture for about 1-2 minutes, whisking continuously. Add milk and turn heat down medium-low. Add cheeses and stir, allowing cheese to melt and and sauce to thicken. It will take about 5-8 minutes for sauce to thicken – keep and eye on it and stir every minute or so to ensure the bottom is not burning. Once sauce is thick, add it to the chicken and pasta and mix to combine.
Spray ramekins with non-stick spray and add about 1 1/2 cups mac and cheese to each. Top with bread crumbs and additional cheese if desired. Bake for 20 minutes, or until cheese is golden. Serve with cilantro.
So good. So, so good that I had to try more than one ramekin. Portion sizing my arse.
141 Comments on “Mexican Mac and Cheese Cups.”
I love twists on the regular Mac & Cheese. Attending the Thursday premiere of Water For Elephants thanks to LivingSocial (or maybe Groupon?), and I’m really excited… usually movies don’t do a great book justice but the previews looked pretty promising!
Oh you have my number! I would do naughty things for one of these! ♥- Katrina
Thank you for helping me decide what to make for dinner! Cannot wait!
I love pasta and I love Mexi — so freakin’ good. I could eat these every day!
You’ve just combined two of my favorite food groups ;D …Mexican food & cheese… and noodles… wait, that’s three. HAHA. looks great Jessica.. and I love that you have them in individual portions. Now if only you could teleport me one MWAHAHAHHA
the best of both worlds, cheese and more cheese.
Fabulous!
I have been avoiding you since being on my new “eating plan” (not a diet)! Now I know why! This looks AMAZING. And so do the s’mores cakes. And the vanilla butter. ARGH. One treat a week would be okay, right? :)
Absolutely!
Oh, I love it! I actually just made mac and cheese for the first time last weekend, with mushrooms and bacon. And whilst I was dousing it with hot sauce, I thought how good a buffalo chicken with blue cheese mac and cheese would be. And this sounds even better! Genius.
Cute story about Mother Lovett + girdles..lol Love the little cup sized portions. Adorable. Fabulous colors!
i have been eagerly awaiting water for elephants ever since i found out who was playing jacob. just kidding (sort of). i’ve actually been dying to see it ever since i found out they were actually MAKING it into a movie. i know what you mean though…i really hope it’s good. and i was kind of unsure about reese playing that role but we shall seeeee.
mac and cheese is the BOMB. and this looks so. great.
I want to make this so bad! This recipe just made my day and is going into my recipe box!
i’m having the same book-to-movie anxiety over ‘something borrowed’. it’s one of my favourite books and i know they changed some things for the movie. i hope it’s good!!
Me too! I adore that book and the two after. I read Something Borrowed the month it was released and have probably read it 5 times since. I am excited about the movie because I love the cast (especially Ginnifer Goodwin!), but I’m sure it will be the typical chick flick. Which means I will love it.
Oh my good gosh that sounds and looks DELICIOUS!
How to make mac and cheese even better: Mexican-ify it :)
These look so good! I’ve been on a Mexican kick lately so these are definitely up my alley.
Mexican and macaroni and cheese, only some of my most favorite things to eat…ever.
I’M COMING OVER FOR DINNER! Do you like red or white wine? I’ll bring dessert too but I’m not the best baker.
Now I have another excuse to have a Cinco De Mayo Fiesta!! YUMM
mmm this looks so good!!
I am new to your blog and so far I think you are GREAT! :) I love your humor, you remind me of a good friend. I am excited to try this dish!
Also I would like to say I will also be very unhappy if the movie Water for Elephants is not as good as the book. It doesn’t hurt that the leading man is easy on the eyes! :)
Cook on!
This looks fantastic!!! And it’s even individually portioned so that I don’t eat the entire pan!! So smart! lol
Awesome…just, awesome.
ok wow!!! this gave me so many ideas of mac and cheese variations!! seeing as everyone at superbowl LOVED the mac and cheese cupcakes my mom and I made…I have a slight feeling these will be as good if not BETTER!
oh and I just glanced at the smores jar…oh my gawwwwddd
Look’s awesome…as do all of your recipies!! I don’t have any Ramekins so I’m assuming any type of baking dish would work?
Yep!
Yum! How do you make mac and cheese better? Add more delicious stuff to it and make it Mexican!! Done and done.
HI! I’m new to your site. I just wanted to say how delicious this looked. I made a somewhat disappointing greek mac and cheese the other day and am determined to redeem myself with this dish this weekend!
Thanks! Let me know if you try it. ;)
I made this for dinner tonight! I made it in a baking dish rather than individual sizes and it turned out great!
I think next time I might try mixing in a little salsa too. (I kept thinking about velveeta/salsa dip while I was making it). We’ll see how adventurous I’m feeling lol Either way, it was great as is. Thank you for the recipe!!
I’m a huge mac and cheese fan, of all creations. Definitely will be trying this.
I’m DYING to see Water for Elephants. There’s no way it’s as good as the book, but it does look promising!!
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OMG you are killin’ me! That looks sooo good! What a great twist on a classic dish!
*drools*
I am so with you on Water For Elephants, although I am even more concerned about The Help. If The Help sucks, I will overdose on Sour Patch Kids, so help me.
Can you come make macaroni at my house? We can throw lots of stuff in the pot and burn it all bubbly at share leftovers with the cows across the street.
Think it ovah.
Yummm! And pre-portioned…perfect. I could an entire pan..
Oh this looks simply divine! I can’t wait to try it! I love your blog!
I just finished reading Water For Elephants yetserday morning before work and have a movie date with the hubby to see it friday night! I love your blog Jessica, and find myself sharing it with friends & family but only on one condition… They can not hurt me for their expanding waistlines!
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What a great recipe. Love the individual serving sizes. Of course I’d need three, but still…
You know… this would be amazing stuffed in a pepper. That way you could eat the cup, too!!
I totally agree!
This look so good. I am going to make it for dinner tomorrow. YUM.
This looks amazing!
Anything with cheese melted on top wins my heart :)
I am definitely trying this soon! And maybe the smores cake for dessert. Is that so wrong?
It is so right.
I want this Mac and Cheese. Right. Now.
Would this fill an 8×8 dish, or should i double the recipe?
Depends on how deep it is, but it should definitely fit! If anything, maybe just do another half of the recipe, but I highly doubt it would need doubled.
Thanks! I think this will be dinner tonight. Sounds like something very quick to make in a pinch, and has lots of flavor.
Well! I just finished my version of Mexican mac n cheese! wow!! I just happened to have chicken jalapeno and red pepper sausage, SO I used it instead chicken.
Delicious!!
Oh you know I am all over this with my love for all things Mexican food! Yummmmmmmmmm-O :)
I love the idea of individual ramekin mac and cheese :) And I seriously hope the movie Water for Elephants is as good as the book was too…it’s one of my favorites!
awww, love the ramekins! what a great recipe and a great twist on mac and cheese!
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Adore this recipe- adding it to my Top 10 pasta recipes on my blog (post airs tomorrow 9am CST). Thanks for being so inspiring!
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