REV: Chipotle Macaroni & Cheese

[ChristineVA]

This was pretty good. Not nearly as cheesy, creamy, and rich as traditional macaroni and cheese, but it was a nice side dish. The recipe called for 2% milk. All I had was 1% milk. Not sure if this made any difference.

It was pretty spicy. My son (age 9) would not eat it because it was too spicy for him, but my 12 year old daughter liked it a lot. The tomatoes were a nice touch and it had almost a "fresh" kind of taste. I would make this again and it would be pretty good for a pot luck.

Christine

[Husker]

I looked everywhere for this recipie last week and finally thought it was something I dreamed. Was this in CL or did you get it elsewhere? Glad to hear it was good. Mac n cheese is always welcomed in our house and I like to find variations of it.

[ChristineVA]

I got it out of the latest issue (July?) of CL. I've brought some for lunch today so I am anxious to see how it reheats.
Christine

[Kathy B]

I was glad to find your review as I want to try this recipe for dinner in the next day or two. Would it work as a vegetarian type main dish with bread and side veggie? Also, what would be a good sub for the 2 percent milk....we only have skim. Do you think I could use skim and just add a little butter to "fatten" it up? Thanks for any advice!

[ChristineVA]

Well, I'm never one to view Mac & Cheese as a main dish--I always think of it as a *side* so I probably wouldn't view this as the main portion of a meal. Plus, I probably wouldn't serve bread with mac and cheese. But, if that's what you like-go for it!

As for the milk, I only had 1% on hand and it worked fine. My only warning is that this is not as creamy as traditional mac and cheese. I don't think the milk made a difference. You would probably do fine using skim milk.

[Kathy B]

Thanks for the reply. You are probably right about the bread, but with a 13 year old DS that is growing like a weed, I will still put some out.:p It's fine that this recipe is not the standard creamy kind...I could tell that from the picture. I think my family will like it better this way. I will go ahead with the skim milk and see what happens.

[lorilei]

Hey Kathy - As people who don't eat much meat, we regularly eat mac/cheese as a main dish. We just pair it with one or two additional veggies -- and sometimes put veggies right into it.

I'd say that this dish could be used that way. Maybe better that it's not super creamy and rich for just that reason.

[Kathy B]

This dish was VERY GOOD! I decided to go ahead and make it for supper (and we did have it as a main dish :) ) and DH and I both really enjoyed it. DS had to pick out the tomatoes, of course, and said it was a little too spicy, but he ate all of his. I did as you suggested, Lorilei, and served it with a green salad AND some sauteed veggies as well as a bowl of grapes. Yummy meal!

The only changes I made were to use full-fat, extra-sharp cheddar, skim milk, and only one chipotle chili. I was sure two would be too spicy for DS, and actually, I think it would have been too spicy for me, too. One chipotle, plus the teaspoon of sauce and the can of spicy tomatoes made this seasoned just right for DH and I. This will definitely be made again! I think you are right, Christine, that this would be a great potluck dish.

[Coco]

1st - It was too hot! I used two chipolte peppers although I did take
out the seeds. We like hot, but that was too much heat. I would definitely recommend using one chipolte.

2nd-I served it with romaine lettuce, strawberries, and poppyseed
dressing ( CL last summer). That was a great decision. The
sweetness of the dressing helped balance the heat.

3rd - I never ever make macaroni and cheese, so since it is such
a rare treat I prefer the traditional recipe.

[rbbaker]

Could someone please post this recipe? Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[rbbaker]

I'd love to have this recipe. Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!

[sweetpea]

I haven't tried this but I have some time to type up the recipe--so here goes! Please excuse any typos...

Chipotle Macaroni and Cheese (CL July 2004, pg. 106)

This macaroni and cheese is a favorite of ours because it is incredibly tasty and easy to prepare. You don't even have to make a white sauce for this creamy dish. The acidic tomatoes counter the richness of the cheeses.

1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles, undrained
4 cups hot cooked elbow macaroni (about 2 cups uncooked)
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup 1% low-fat cottage cheese
1 cup 2% reduced fat milk
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 large egg, lightly beaten
cooking spray
3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Remove 1 teaspoon adobo sauce from can; set aside. Remove 2 chipotle chiles from can; finely chop to measure 1 tablespoon. Reserve remaining chiles/sauce for another use.
3. Melt butter in a Duthc oven over med-high heat. Add chopped chiles, onion, bell pepper, and garlic; cook 4 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring frequently. Sprinkle with flour; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium; add tomatoes. Cook 3 minutes or until thickened. Add reserved 1 tsp adobo sauce, pasta, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, milk, parmesan and egg; stir to combine. Spoon pasta mixture into a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray; top with breadcrumbs. Bake at 350 deg. for 30 minutes or until bubbly.
Yield: 6 servings (serving size about 1 cup)
Cal 342; fat 8.5g; pro 34.2g; carb 39.6g; fiber 2g; chol 56 mg; iron 2.4mg; sodium 756 mg; calc 307mg

[tbear1923]

I thought this dish was pretty good. I would put it in the good/very good section. It was too comfort food to be excellent. I used full fat xtra sharp cheddar, added 4 garlic cloves to it (couldn't really taste it), used a whole small jar of green chiles with the diced tomatoes, since I had 1% milk I just added a touch more cottage cheese- mine came out creamy, and used 3 chipotle chiles with three tsp. reserved sauce- YUMMY. I liked the kick to it- not spicy for DH and me:p Although I might have just used 2tsp to the sauce because the chipotle flavor was just a tad too much. Overall good dish. Oh and I used shell pasta instead of elbows and a bit more breadcrumbs than called for.

[rbbaker]

Thanks so much for posting this recipe. It looks great!

[PoppyJ]

Yum! Both my DH and I thought this was really good. The changes I made were I used skim milk, whole wheat pasta, and used around 1 1/4 cups of cottage cheese because that is what I had left. I also used plain diced tomatoes. We did not find this hot at all, just very flavorful and creamy. This is my new favorite mac and cheese. I served it as a main dish with a salad and steamed broccoli.

[stacy7272]

I thought that this was very good! I did find it to be very creamy. I never measure cheese by the cup, I use ounces instead. This called for 8!! oz of cheddar cheese! I couldn't believe how much cheese there was. I thought it was much more than 2 cups after it was grated.

I didn't find this too spicy at all, I thought it was just about right. Although, it is hard for me to say exactly how many chipotles I used since I have a frozen block of chipotles that I just slice a piece from. (I'm going to separate my chipotles next time before I freeze them.)

Also, I was surprised that this dish serving 6 only called for one garlic clove. I think that it could use more. All in all, I really liked this dish.

[Luvmyson]

Hi everyone. It's been ages since I've posted. Forgive me.

I have looked all over for canned chipotles in adobe sauce but cannot find it anywhere. I used to see it in the supermarket all the time. What can I use as a substitute?

[dsignpeach]

Hmm. I don't know what you could replace the chipoltes with, they have such a distinct flavor. Have you looked in the Mexican section of the grocery? Not with the salsas and chilies but the ethnic section. That is where I find it. In GA, they're available at Walmart and Publix, I haven't been able to find them at Kroger.

I can't wait to try this recipe. I love spicy, and I love meatless main dishes.

[Terrytx]

I made this as a side dish and it got raves from my family. Someone even went make for a 3rd helping:eek:

[PAMMELA]

I'm having leftovers for lunch today. I thought this dish was great!

[JulieAnn]

We loved this! It's definitely not your regular creamy macaroni and cheese, but that doesn't change how good it is.

[lwright]

This is for Luvmyson, who is looking for canned chipotles in the Philly area. I get them at SuperFresh across the river in South Jersey. They're made by a company called Sabores Aztecas, and they're in the Mexican aisle.

I'm wondering if Trader Joe's might have them, too.

I stocked up on 5 cans last time, because my closest grocery store doesn't carry them, and they're in so many of the recipes I want to try.

[Husker]

We have been very busy this summer so I finally got around to trying this. We loved it. It reminded us of a new dish we just had at the Cheesecake Factory that had bow tie pasta in a chipolte cream sauce with chicken. Somehow I feel this one is probably better for you. In fact my DH asked where the key lime cheesecake was when we were done. It made alot for just the two of us but the leftovers were still good. I only used 1 chipotle and a tsp of sauce. Enough spice to let you know it was there but not enough to keep from eating it.

[Peggy]

We had this for dinner tonight as the main course. It was terrific! My changes: I used non-fat cottage cheese, non-fat milk, full-fat cheddar cheese, fire roasted canned tomatoes, half a can of diced green chiles and only 1/2 of a chipolte chile. It was close to perfect for our tastes. I thought it was surprisingly creamy for a CL mac and cheese. Will definately make this again!

Peggy

[HealthyinMN]

We made this last night! Very good! The only changes I made was to use Non-fat cottage cheese and non-fat milk. It came out very smooth and creamy - and spicy! We really liked the heat in this - this will definetly become our new Mac n cheese recipe! Yum!

[JLS]

I made this tonight, and really liked it. I agree with some of the posters, that it was a tad too spicy. I probably would use 3/4 of the called for chili amount. I also used full fat Cheddar (Tillamook) & 1% milk.

Definate repeater for me!

[susan_foster]

Bumping this back up to give my review. And I say - eh. I like the taste, but visually it wasn't that hot. The cottage cheese I had didn't blend totally in, so there were little white dots in the final result. I also used 2% shredded sharp from Kraft, which is bright orange - that detracted from the appeal for me, but I knew that going in.

I think what I am going to do the next time I make Mac & Cheese (WW VV recipe) is take the parts I did like - the canned tomatoes & chili vs. the chopped tomato in the WW recipe, the chipotle - and use the WW for the rest.

Susan

[bobmark226]

Originally posted by susan_foster
Bumping this back up to give my review. And I say - eh. I like the taste, but visually it wasn't that hot. The cottage cheese I had didn't blend totally in, so there were little white dots in the final result. I also used 2% shredded sharp from Kraft, which is bright orange - that detracted from the appeal for me, but I knew that going in.

I think what I am going to do the next time I make Mac & Cheese (WW VV recipe) is take the parts I did like - the canned tomatoes & chili vs. the chopped tomato in the WW recipe, the chipotle - and use the WW for the rest.

Susan

I did this for the first time yesterday and loved the results. I did make one deliberate change and one omission, but everything about it was spot on: flavor, texture, spiciness. The purposeful change was that I used crushed tomatoes rather than diced, so it had an overall pinkish/red color and I think that added to the creaminess, because after I popped it into the oven, I happened to look at the recipe in the holder and saw "1 egg." Egg? What egg? :eek: It wasn't missed at all. I never use lowfat cheeses, but decided to give Cabot's 50% a try for a change and it was just fine, which surprised me.

Like Susan, I think I'll tweak this a bit more next time, combining it with Bayless' salsa-based New Macaroni & Cheese, which is my favorite.

Incidentally, this was the first time I bought La Costensa brand chipotles...bigger can, but the peppers themselves are much "meatier" than Goya or any of the other Latin brands I buy so I'll probably switch to those all the time.

Bob

[shscharles]

I had to try this after reading the reviews. Did it pretty much as posted except used Pecorino Romano instead of Parmesan, one chipotle instead of two (but DID use the teaspoon of sauce), skimmed milk, and 2% Kraft Cheddar. (I'm in a 'use whatcha got' mode.) Since I'm not much of a bread crumbs kinda person, sprinkled more of the Pecorino Romano on top.

It was very good. Weeknight good. I'll definately do it again. But will probably puree the cottage cheese next time, I agree with susan_foster that the white bits were not appealing.

A keeper.