Spinach Bacon Mac Cheese Recipes

KRAFT SPINACH MAC & CHEESE WITH BACON

Steps:

• Prepare Dinner as directed on package.
• Stir in spinach and pepper; cook and stir 2 min. or just until spinach is wilted.
• Stir in bacon.

CHICKEN AND SPINACH MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the elbow macaroni and cook according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.
• Meanwhile, place the chicken skin in a large nonstick saute pan over medium heat, being careful to keep the skin as flat as possible. Cook, flipping over halfway, for about 2 minutes, until the skin is crisp and the fat has rendered out. Remove the skin from the pan and place on a paper towel-lined plate.
• Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in the same pan over medium-high heat. Add the spinach and wilt for 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Remove the spinach from the pan and set aside.
• To the same pan, add the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter and melt over medium-high heat. Add the flour and cook, whisking continuously, until the mixture is free of any lumps and light tan in color, about 1 minute. Lower the heat to medium, slowly pour in the milk, whisking constantly, and cook until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Add the cheese, whisking to combine, and cook until it is melted and the sauce is smooth. Reduce the heat to low and whisk in the chicken stock, lemon juice, yellow mustard and hot sauce. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.
• Add the drained pasta, wilted spinach and pulled chicken to the sauce. Stir to combine. Crumble the crispy chicken skin on top and serve immediately.

SPINACH AND BACON MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• In 5-quart Dutch oven, cook and drain pasta as directed on package. Return to Dutch oven; cover to keep warm.
• Meanwhile, in 10-inch skillet, cook bacon over medium heat 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often, until crisp; remove to paper towels. Reserve 2 tablespoons drippings.
• In 3-quart saucepan, heat butter and reserved bacon drippings over medium heat until butter is melted. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds or until fragrant. Stir in flour, salt and pepper with whisk until smooth. Stir in milk; heat to boiling. Stir in cheese until melted and sauce is smooth.
• Pour cheese sauce over pasta; stir until coated. Stir in spinach. Reserve 1/4 cup of the bacon; stir remaining bacon into pasta mixture. Divide pasta mixture among 6 serving bowls; garnish with reserved bacon.

SPINACH MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425.
• In medium sized pot, over medium heat, melt butter.
• Add the flour and cook for 3 minutes.
• Pour in the hot milk and cook until thickened.
• Add the spinach, cheese, seasonings, horseradish and mustard.
• Mix well.
• Combine with the cooked pasta.
• Place in a greased cassarole dish.
• Bake in oven for 15 minutes or until bubbling.

SPINACH-BACON MAC & CHEESE RECIPE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Cook pasta in large saucepan as directed on package, omitting salt and adding spinach to the boiling water for the last minute.
• Meanwhile, cook and stir bacon in large saucepan until crisp. Use slotted spoon to remove bacon from pan, reserving drippings in pan. Add flour to drippings; cook and stir 1 min. or until bubbly. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to boil, stirring constantly; cook and stir 3 to 5 min. or until thickened.
• Add 1 cup cheddar and Parmesan to saucepan; cook and stir 2 to 3 min. or until melted. Add pasta mixture and bacon; mix well.
• Spoon into 1-1/2-qt. casserole sprayed with cooking spray; top with remaining cheddar. Bake 20 min. or until heated through.

SPINACH MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with 1 teaspoon butter.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes.
• Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat while macaroni is cooking. Add flour and whisk until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in a little milk and continue whisking. Pour in remaining milk and add frozen spinach. Cook, whisking constantly, until spinach softens and sauce thickens, about 5 minutes.
• Remove sauce from heat and stir in 2 cups Cheddar cheese; whisk until melted. Season sauce with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
• Drain macaroni and spread evenly in the prepared baking dish. Cover with cheese sauce. Mix well. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup Cheddar cheese on top.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted, about 30 minutes. Turn on the oven's broiler and broil until a golden crust forms on top, about 3 minutes.

SPINACH MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium. Add onion and cook until translucent, 6 minutes. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring frequently, until mixture is pale golden and has a slightly nutty aroma, about 2 minutes. Whisking constantly, add 2 cups milk. Add remaining 2 cups milk, raise heat to medium-high, and whisk until smooth; season with salt and pepper. Cook, whisking constantly, until sauce comes to a boil, 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens, 13 to 15 minutes.
• Add spinach and cook, stirring constantly, until wilted, about 3 minutes. Add cheese and stir until melted, about 2 minutes. Add cooked macaroni and stir to combine. Serve immediately.

MAC 'N CHEESE WITH BACON AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the macaroni and cook for 8 to 9 minutes, until al dente. Drain.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a small saucepan heat the milk with the thyme sprigs and 2 garlic cloves. Melt the butter in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly, to keep lumps from forming. Strain the solids out of the milk and whisk it into the butter and flour mixture. Continue to whisk vigorously, and cook until the mixture is nice and smooth. Stir in the 4 cups of the cheese and continue to cook and stir to melt the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cooked macaroni and the parsley and fold that all in to coat the macaroni with the cheese mixture. Scrape into a 3-quart baking dish and sprinkle with the remaining 1 1/2 cups cheese. Bake for 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.
• While that bakes, heat a saute pan. Add the bacon, render the fat and cook until crispy. Add onion, garlic and thyme leaves and cook for about 5 minutes to soften the onion. Season with salt and pepper.
• To serve, scatter the bacon mixture over the mac and cheese. Use a big spoon to scoop out servings, making sure you get some of the smoking bacon mixture on each spoonful.

SPINACH AND BACON QUICHE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Place the bacon in a large, deep skillet, and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon slices on a paper towel-lined plate. Chop when cool.
• Fit the pie crust into a 9-inch pie dish, and set aside.
• In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, salt, black pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and hot pepper sauce. Spread the spinach into the bottom of the pie crust; top with bacon, Cheddar cheese, and green onion. Pour the egg mixture over the filling, and sprinkle the quiche with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the top is lightly puffed and browned, and a knife inserted into the center of the quiche comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes.

SPINACH-BACON MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• In a large pot over medium heat, bring about 4 quarts water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes less than package directions.
• Add spinach at the last 30 seconds of cooking. Drain noodles and spinach.
• While the pasta is cooking, heat a saucepan over medium heat. Add bacon and cook, stirring regularly, until crisp. With a slotted spoon, remove from pan.
• Add flour to the bacon drippings and cook, stirring regularly, for about 1 to 2 minutes or until bubbly.
• Gradually add milk, whisking vigorously to prevent lumps. Bring to a simmer, whisking constantly, for about 3 to 5 minutes or until thickened.
• Add Parmesan cheese, 1 cup of the cheddar cheese. Continue to cook, whisking constantly. for about 2 to 3 minutes or until melted.
• Add cayenne pepper and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
• Add pasta-spinach mixture and 2/3 of the bacon to the cheese sauce and stir gently to combine.
• Lightly grease a casserole with cooking spray. Spoon pasta mixture into casserole. Top with the remaining 1/3 of the bacon and the remaining 1 cup cheddar cheese.
• Bake in a 350 F oven for about 15 to 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted.
• Remove from oven and allow to rest for about 5 minutes before serving.

SPINACH BACON PUMPKIN MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Spray a 2-quart baking dish or 9x9 inch or 11x7 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray, or grease with olive oil or butter.
• Boil the noodles until al dente, according to the directions on the package. Once done cooking, drain and place in a large bowl.
• Cook your bacon: Add bacon to a large skillet or pan and place over medium heat, cook bacon on both sides until crispy and golden brown. If the pan starts to smoke at any point, simply lower the heat. I always cook my bacon on medium low heat. Once bacon is done, blot with a paper towel to absorb excess grease, then chop into bite sized pieces and transfer to the large bowl with the noodles
• Drain the grease from the bacon pan, then place the same pan over low heat and cook your spinach: add spinach to pan and cook until spinach wilts, the spinach will absorb any of the small amount of grease remaining on the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat and transfer to the large bowl with the noodles and bacon.
• In the same pan, add in 2 tablespoons of butter and place over medium heat. Once butter is melted, whisk in a little bit of the flour and then slowly add in milk, a little bit at a time, alternating with the flour and vigorously whisking away any lumps. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and stir every so often, until the sauce thickens up.
• Once the sauce has thickened up a bit, turn off the heat and stir in garlic powder, parmesan and cheddar cheese. salt and LOTS of freshly ground black pepper. Finally stir in the pumpkin puree.
• Add the pumpkin cheese sauce to the bowl with the pasta, bacon and spinach. Season again with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir well to combine, then pour mixture into your prepared baking pan and spread out. Top with remaining ½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese if you like extra cheesiness!
• In a small bowl, mix breadcrumbs with melted butter. Sprinkle breadcrumb mixture on top of casserole and bake for 25 minutes or until breadcrumbs are golden brown. Serves 6.

MAC 'N' CHEESE WITH BACON, SPINACH AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• Steps oven to 200°C. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Grease a large baking dish or 6 large muffin tins. Cook macaroni in pot of boiling water for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until al dente (just tender). Reserve ½ cup pasta water, then drain well. Heat olive oil in a large fry-pan on medium heat. Fry onion and bacon for 6-8 minutes, until golden. Add pasta water and rub bottom of pan to release brownings. Remove from heat and stir through spinach. While onion mixture is cooking, melt butter in a medium pot on low to medium heat. Stir in flour and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes, until caramel in colour. Remove from heat, and stir in stock powder, mustard and very gradually pour in milk, stirring constantly. Return to heat and bring to a simmer and cook for 3-4 minutes, until thickened, stirring frequently. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Combine macaroni with vegetable and bacon mixture and sauce and pour into a large baking dish or into about 6 large or 12 small muffin tins. Mix cheese with breadcrumbs, sprinkle over mac 'n' cheese and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and crispy. Place tomatoes in a small oven dish. Mix olive oil, balsamic vinegar and brown sugar together and drizzle over the tomatoes. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until soft and cooked through. Spoon some mac 'n' cheese onto plates with some roast tomatoes on the side.

MAC N' CHEESE WITH BACON, SPINACH AND CRUNCHY COS

Steps:

• Steps oven to 200°C. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Cook macaroni in pot of boiling water for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until al dente (just tender). Reserve ½ cup pasta water then drain well. Heat olive oil in a large fry-pan on medium heat. Fry onion and bacon for 6-8 minutes, until golden. Add pasta water and rub bottom of pan to release brownings. Remove from heat and stir through spinach and capsicum. While onion mixture is cooking, melt butter in a medium pot on low to medium heat. Stir in flour and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes, until caramel in colour. Remove from heat, and stir in stock powder, mustard and very gradually pour in milk, stirring constantly. Return to heat and bring to a simmer and cook for 3-4 minutes, until thickened, stirring frequently. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Combine macaroni with vegetable and bacon mixture and sauce and pour into a large baking dish or into about 6 large or 12 small muffin tins or ramekins. Mix cheese with breadcrumbs. Sprinkle over mac 'n' cheese and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until crust is golden brown. In a bowl, whisk all dressing ingredients together. Roughly chop lettuce and drizzle dressing over lettuce just before serving. Divide mac 'n' cheese between plates with crunchy cos on the side. Serve with a dollop of tomato sauce if desired.