Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Bacon, Ranch, and Chicken Mac and Cheese

Yum! Neither of us tasted the dill. This was really good!!!

Bacon, Ranch, and Chicken Mac and Cheese

Photo by ALB

A tablespoon of flour stabilizes the milk so that you can bring the sauce to a boil. The combination of onion and garlic powders plus fresh dill creates a flavor similar to ranch dressing.

Ingredients
8 ounces uncooked elbow macaroni
3 slice applewood-smoked bacon
12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups 2% milk
1/3 cup condensed 45% reduced-sodium 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 cup shredded six-cheese Italian blend (such as Sargento), divided
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray


Preparation
1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain.

2. Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving drippings in pan. Finely chop bacon; set aside. Increase heat to medium-high. Add chicken to drippings in pan; sauté 6 minutes or until done.

3. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; sprinkle flour evenly into pan. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk. Combine milk and soup, stirring with a whisk; gradually add milk mixture to saucepan, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil; cook 2 minutes or until thick. Remove from heat; let stand 4 minutes or until sauce cools to 155°. Add 3/4C  Italian cheese blend, onion powder, garlic powder, dill, and salt, stirring until cheese melts. Stir in pasta and chicken.

4. Preheat broiler.

5. Spoon mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with reserved bacon and colby-Jack cheese. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese melts.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: about 2 cups)

CALORIES 497 ; FAT 17g (sat 9.2g,mono 4.7g,poly 1.4g); CHOLESTEROL 74mg; CALCIUM 368mg; CARBOHYDRATE 51.7g; SODIUM 767mg; PROTEIN 33.3g; FIBER 2g; IRON 2.4mg

Cooking Light, MARCH 2010

15 Smart Points (my additions/subtractions at 4 servings)

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