Green Chile Mac and Cheese

This super duper wonderful recipe for Green Chile Mac and Cheese was actually supposed to get posted ages ago… Like, shortly after I posted my recipes for Colorado Green Chile and Smokey Green Chile. It took me like, three tries to get this mac and cheese made/photographed/ up here for you guys. I almost gave up, but it was too good not to share. 

You wouldn’t think it should be that difficult. After all, I had made a batch of both Colorado and Smokey Green Chile. Then, I did make mac and cheese with some of that wonderful green chile. (And about fifty zillion other tasty things: huevos rancheros, smothered burritos, enchiladas, nachos…) But, somehow, the mac and cheese got eaten before I managed to photograph it. Whoops… And unfortunately, there was no more green chile left due to the frequent making of various wonderful recipes that happened to include green chile. 

So, no big deal. I figured I’d make another batch of green chile and try again. I bought a nice big bag full of chilis. Washed em’ up and was ready to go. I put them in the oven in a Pyrex dish (as my dutch oven was otherwise occupied), on broil to give em’ a good roasting. Then I open the oven to flip them so the bottom sides could get their roast on, then guess what happens?

A ridiculously loud cracking sound and my Pyrex totally shatters! There’s hot glass all over the floor. All over the oven door. And even inside the oven. (In case you were wondering why the Pyrex randomly and out of the blue decided to shatter: the cold air outside the oven came into contact with the very very hot dish that had been broiled. The rapid cooling caused the dish to shatter. Apparently this is a no no. Whoops…) Needless to say the chilis were done for after this. I certainty wasn’t going to risk someone accidentally eating glass. Scrap that batch.

After another trip to the grocery store another day, I finally got my green chile made. I was very careful to earmark plenty of that chile for my mac and cheese. The next day I got the mac and cheese made; and warned all away from eating until my photos were done. I took my photos and…They turned out utterly horrible. Still not sure why, but, they made the mac and cheese look about as appealing as an old boot. Which is completely sad because Green Chile Mac is really, really flippin’ good. Whoops I did it again. (hah) So, needless to say I would’t let anyone near that dish of mac and cheese. I popped it in the fridge until the next day, when I took it out, reheated it, and took a whole new set of photos.

Thankfully, the photos are respectable and here we are. I figure that as long the computer doesn’t crash (knock on wood) I can safely predict there will  be a recipe for awesomely gooey, cheesey, just a hint of spicy, very very carb-y, plenty of pork, and hock full of chiles, Green Chile Mac and Cheese, at the end of this post. 

In fact,I’m going to stop talking and get right to the recipe now. It doesn’t seem wise to tempt fate. I could end up pulling my back out of alignment while typing the recipe or something… 

OW!
OWW OWW OWW!!! 

MY BACK! 

J/K. So without further adieu: 

Green Chile Mac and Cheese

• 1 lb (one box) macaroni or any other pasta shape
• 1 cups shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 1 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter
• splash of cream
• 1/4 cup milk + more as needed
• 1 cup green chile
• optional: diced jalapeño, to taste (I used about a teaspoon.)
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs or panko

1. Preheat the oven to 350*. Prepare a baking dish by lightly coating with spray oil, set aside. In a large pot, cook the pasta according to the packages al dente directions.

2. Drain the pasta and set aside. Return the pot to the stove, over a low heat. Add the, butter, cream, milk, and cheese to the pot. Stir well to mix all ingredients. Allow everything to melt together, 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Add the green chile, (and optional jalapeño if desired) mix until well combined. Add additional milk as needed if the sauce is too thick to coat all the pasta well. 

3. Add the pasta back to the pot and mix gently so that all the pasta is covered with the sauce.

4. Pour the pasta and sauce into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the bread crumbs evenly over the mac and cheese. Bake uncovered at 350* for about 1 hour, or until fully melted through and the bread crumbs are browned. If the bread crumbs begin to over brown cover with foil for the reminder of baking.