Ingredients
Mac & Cheese
1 stick unsalted butter
¼ cup all purpose flour
4 cloves garlic
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp onion salt
2 tsp paprika
4 cups whole milk
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
2 cups colby jack cheese, shredded
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
¼ cup buffalo sauce
1 lb box elbow pasta
Buffalo Chicken
3 in chicken breasts, cut half lengthwise
4 ½ cups whole milk
½ cup hot sauce
2 tbsp onion salt
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp black pepper
½ cup pickle juice brine
2 cups all purpose flour
3 eggs
1 ½ cups buffalo sauce
3 ½ cups panko breadcrumbs
Oil for frying
Blue Cheese crumbles (optional)
Green Onions(optional)
Directions
Mac & Cheese
Step 1
To a large skillet on medium heat, add the butter and melt.
Step 2
Once melted, add in the flour, with a whisk, mix to combine to avoid any lumps forming. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
Step 3
Add in the garlic(grate the fresh garlic cloves with a microplane or finely chop them, or if you have garlic confit, slow cooked garlic cloves in olive oil, use that like I did), salt, black pepper, onion salt and paprika, whisk to combine.
Step 4
Pour in the milk and keep stirring to fully combine everything.
Step 5
Turn the heat to medium low and slowly start adding in the shredded cheeses(reserve about 1 cup of the combined cheese for topping the Mac and cheese for baking). Continuously mix the cheeses into the milk until fully melted and combined to make sure nothing is burning at the bottom of the pan.
Step 6
Lastly stir in the buffalo sauce. Taste the cheese sauce and adjust any seasonings if needed.
Step 7
To assemble the Mac and cheese, cook your pasta for 2 minutes less than what the box instructions say.
Step 8
Once your pasta is cooked, add it to a large bowl and mix it in with the cheese sauce.
Step 9
To bake the Mac and cheese, you can assemble and bake personal sized baking dishes of the Mac, add in the Mac and cheese then top it off with more of the reserved shredded cheese. Or you can pour the entire Mac and cheese into a large baking dish and top it off with the reserved shredded cheese.
Step 10
If baking personal sized Mac and cheese, bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. If baking one large baking dish, bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
Step 11
To serve the Mac and cheese, slice up the chicken cutlets and place them on top of the baked mac and cheese, drizzle the whole thing over with warmed up buffalo sauce. Garnish with blue cheese crumbled and thinly sliced green onions. You can also drizzle over ranch if wanted.
Buffalo Chicken
Step 1
If using whole chicken breasts, cut them in half lengthwise to thin out. You can also already buy thin chicken cutlets.
Step 2
Add the thin chicken cutlets to a bowl along with the milk, 1/2 cup hot sauce, 1 tbsp of each of the seasonings, the pickled juice and mix to combine. Let marinate for at least 1 hour, but the longer the better flavor the chicken will develop. I marinated for 6 hours.
Step 3
When ready to start dredging and frying the chicken, prepare your dredging station.
Step 4
To one tray, add the flour and all of the remaining spices. Mix to combine. To a second tray add the 3 eggs, 1/2 cup buffalo sauce and 1/2 cup milk, whisk to combine. To the last tray, add the panko breadcrumbs.
Step 5
To coat the chicken, drain off any of the excess marinade mixture, pass the chicken through the flour mixture, then the egg mixture, then lastly through the panko breadcrumbs, making sure to evenly coat through each layer. Continue with all of your chicken.
Step 6
Get a large skillet with enough oil to come up to about 1 inch. Set to medium high heat.
Step 7
Once the oil is hot, fry the chicken cutlets until perfectly golden brown and crispy, about 4-5 minutes per side.
Step 8
Once cooked, place on a paper towel lined plate to drain off any excess oil.
