Fried Basil Egg with Mac & Cheese

This is a similar idea to the Exploded Macaroni Omelet dish that I made several months ago.  It is a simple, straight forward cheese, egg and pasta seasoned with some fresh torn basil, garlic, salt and cracked pepper.  It made for a tasty wake and bake munchie-hangover cure.  

Ingredients
(serves 2)

1 box Annie's Macaroni and Cheese
2 1/2 tbsp butter
2 eggs
a small handful of chopped or torn fresh basil leaves
salt and garlic-pepper


Directions

Cover pasta in a a pot or saucepan with water (about 6 cups).  Bring to a boil and cook at Medium heat. 

Cook for another 5 minutes or until done. 

Drain pasta.  

Heat 2 tbsp of butter in the pasta pot on low heat. 

Place 1/2 tbsp of butter in a small skillet or frying pan set to Medium-High heat. Crack an egg in the frying pan when the butter melts.  I like to bust open the yolk with a spatula. 

Tear or cut up the basil leaves and sprinkle on top of the eggs.

Add 1/4 cup milk and powdered cheese to pasta pot. 

Mix cheese, butter and milk together until smooth and creamy. 

Add pasta back in and mix well. 

After about 2 minutes, pile as much pasta as you want in a a bowl.

Salt eggs in the frying pan.  Flip eggs for 30 seconds and then  remove and place yolk side up on top of the Mac n' Cheese. 

Crack some Garlic-Pepper to taste. 

If you don't have garlic pepper, you can add ~ 1 tbsp minced garlic to the butter to fry the eggs.

You can also garnish with a little shredded cheese if you have some on hand.  

EAT WITH A KNIFE AND SPOON!

Exploded Macaroni Omelet

I told you there would be more Mac n' Cheese recipes.  If you haven't noticed, I tend to sneak veggies like broccoli into my Mac n' Cheeses.  I usually keep frozen spinach, broccoli and a bag of mixed  veggies in the freezer as backup/emergency recipe additives.  Broccoli tastes yummy with cheese and pasta, so it's a natural to throw in with any mac n' cheese.  My favorite is Annie's White Cheddar & Elbows.  The white cheddar is sharp and actually tastes like real cheese.  Plus it actually is real cheese.  If you don't have boxy white cheddar mac lying around, I recommend adding some shredded/pulverized parmesan to any other boxy cheesy mac you have to give it an extra strong cheesy flavor.

Oh, and the egg.  What you see pictured above is actually my breakfast from yesterday morning. I wanted an omelet, but didn't have any cheese.  

White Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese with Fried Egg + Broccoli

Ingredients

1 box of Annie's White Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese

1 egg

1 tsp minced garlic

2 1/2  tbsp butter

1/4 cup milk or milk alternative

1/2 cup broccoli florets (fresh or frozen)

salt and pepper

Directions

Cover pasta in a a pot or saucepan with water (about 6 cups).  Bring to a boil and cook at Medium heat.

After about 4 minutes add in broccoli (fresh or frozen).

Cook for another 5 minutes or until done.

Drain pasta.  

Heat 2 tbsp of butter in the pasta pot on low heat.

Place 1/2 tbsp of butter and garlic in a small skillet or frying pan set to Medium-High heat. Crack an egg in the frying pan when the butter melts.  Bust the yolk open if you want to.  I do.

Add 1/4 cup milk and powdered cheese to pasta pot.

Mix cheese, butter and milk together until smooth and creamy.

Add pasta and broccoli back in and mix well.

After about 2 minutes, pile as much pasta as you want in a a bowl.

Salt egg in the frying pan.  Remove egg from frying pan with spatula and place on top of Mac n' Cheese.

Pepper to taste.  Eat with fork and knife. Or just fork.  That's what I did, but it was hard.

Skillet Baked Macaroni & Cheese w/ Broccoli & Red Pepper

Macaroni and Cheese is my ultimate favorite food and has been as long as I can remember.  It's rich, warm, cheesy and satisfying.  This will be the first of many Mac & Cheese recipes to be posted on this blog.  I'm starting with the best, in my opinion, and also the more labor intensive. This is recipe that has evolved from a traditional, homemade baked Mac & Cheese recipe that my Aunt made one summer that blew my mind.  I was 13 and already a huge fan of the boxed varieties.  I got the recipe from my Aunt  so I could recreate it at home.  Over the years I experimented with extra ingredients  and cooking methods and this is what I've created today...

Skillet Baked Macaroni & Cheese with Broccoli and Red Peppers

Ingredients

1   8 oz block of Cheddar Cheese

1/2 lb  Macaroni (uncooked)

1   16 oz  tub of Cottage Cheese (low-fat or regular)

4 oz  thinly sliced Alta Badea Cheese (can sub Swiss or Emmentaler)

1 medium Egg

1 1/2 tbsp Butter

1 medium Onion, chopped

1 tbsp chopped Garlic

1/2 cup chopped Broccoli

1 medium Red Pepper, chopped

3/4 cup Panko Bread Crumbs

Salt and Pepper 

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F 

Chop Cheddar Cheese into 1/2 - 1 inch cubes.

Boil Macaroni in a large pot until al-dente.  

Melt butter in large cast iron skillet.

Sauté Onions, Garlic and Red Peppers in skillet, approximately 15 minutes, then take skillet off heat.  

Drain and rinse Macaroni with cold water.  

Mix Cottage Cheese, Cheddar Cheese and Egg in a large bowl.  Add Macaroni.  Add slightly cooled Onion/Garlic/Red Pepper mixture.  Mix well.

Pour mixture back into skillet, shake over with Salt & Pepper and cover with aluminum foil.

Bake for 30 minutes and then remove from oven.  Remove foil and add thinly sliced Alta Badea evenly on top of Macaroni, then evenly distribute Panko Bread Crumbs over dish.  

Place back into the oven uncovered.  Cook for another 30 minutes, or until the top browns. 

This dish is probably best pre-planned for a group of pot-heads.  I recommend waiting to light the pipe until about 15-20 minutes before it comes out of the oven.  Don't worry, the aroma of the dish will prevent you from forgetting to pull it out in time.