Florentine Mac and Cheese and Roast Chicken Sausage Meatballs

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray, 2007

Show: 30 Minute MealsEpisode: Mac and Cheese Goes Green

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (99)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(99)

Cook Time:
20 min
Level:
Easy
Yield:
4 servings

Times:

Prep: 20 min
Inactive Prep: --
Cook: 20 min
Total:: 40 min

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Ingredients

Salt
1 pound cavatappi corkscrew shaped hallow pasta
1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
Black pepper
2 to 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves stripped and finely chopped
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
3 cloves garlic, grated
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cups grated Parmigiano Reggiano, divided
1 egg
3/4 cup bread crumbs, plus more, if needed*
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 boxes, 10 ounces, chopped frozen spinach
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup whole milk
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg, eyeball it

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Place a large pot of water on to boil for pasta. When it comes to a boil, salt it and add the pasta to cook to al dente. Strain pasta reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.

While the water is coming to a boil, in a large mixing bowl combine the chicken, salt and pepper, rosemary, fennel seeds, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano - a rounded handful, egg and bread crumbs. *If the mixture seems too wet, add a handful of bread crumbs and mix together.

Form 8 large round balls, about 3 to 4-inches. Coat balls in a couple of tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil and lightly grease a baking sheet with 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil. Arrange balls on the baking sheet and roast 17 to 18 minutes until juices run clear.

Defrost spinach in microwave 8 to 10 minutes on "defrost" setting depending on the microwave. Place the boxes in a shallow dish to catch any run off.

While the meatballs roast, in a medium sauce pot over medium heat, melt butter, whisk in flour, cook 1 minute then whisk in stock and milk, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and thicken 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1 cup grated Parmigiano and reduce heat on lowest setting.

Wring spinach completely dry in clean kitchen towel then separate as you add it to the sauce. Also add the reserved 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.

Toss pasta with the spinach-white sauce and adjust seasonings.

Serve Florentine Mac-n-Cheese with 2 meatballs per person along side.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Florentine Mac and Cheese and Roast Chicken Sausage Meatballs
andy new york, NY 03-18-2010
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Rated: 5 stars out of 5

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recipe Florentine Mac and Cheese and Roast Chicken Sausage Meatballs
Nicole Chicago, IL 03-07-2010
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Nice twist on mac & cheese
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

I love the idea of this dish & with a slight tweak that I use whenever I make mac & cheese it's really delicious. I take the... milk I'm using for the sauce & heat over very low heat for about a half hour to 45 minutes in a heavy bottomed sauce pan with half an onion, 2 smashed cloves of garlic, a couple of whole cloves and a half teaspoon of dry mustard (you could do this ahead of time & cool the milk to room temp & refrigerate). The flavored milk really makes a difference & definitely keeps the sauce from being bland. Other than that I follow the recipe exactly & agree with other reviewers that it's really important to squeeze all of the moisture out of the spinach. Read more
recipe Florentine Mac and Cheese and Roast Chicken Sausage Meatballs
Bee Savannah, GA 02-05-2010
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Sooo delicious!
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

I was a little concerned when I first decided to try this recipe due to some of the negative comments users have left, but I... found that with some of the modifications other reviewers suggested the dish was completely delicious! My dinner partner ate two full helpings and loved it, and so did I. I used ground turkey breast for the meatballs, and the texture was perfectly fine and totally delicious. The sauce is where I kind of messed around, since so many reviewers felt it was bland. I sauteed a bit of onion and garlic with the butter before adding any of the other ingredients. I replaced the whole milk with fat free 1/2 & 1/2, and rather than use two boxes of frozen spinach I used half a box of frozen spinach and half a box of chopped up frozen broccoli, thawed. I also left enough of the meatball mix to make about a meatball and a half, and I mixed that in with the sauce. I used the listed amount of grated Parmesan but also added about two and a half teaspoons of ricotta and a handful of shredded mozzarella. I completely disregarded the leftover pasta water and accidentally forgot to add the chicken stock at all, and the sauce was still excellent! I will definitely be making this again very, very soon!Read more
recipe Florentine Mac and Cheese and Roast Chicken Sausage Meatballs
Allison Sandy, UT 01-22-2010
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Good for Kids
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Kids loved it!!!
recipe Florentine Mac and Cheese and Roast Chicken Sausage Meatballs
Nicole Fresno, CA 11-29-2009
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Really good!
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

I have made this recipe a few times and my husband and I love it. Like others, I usually double the sauce while keeping the... amount of spinach the same. This makes it heat up better the next day for leftovers. An important tip to keep the mac and cheese from tasting bland is to dry out the spinach as much as humanly possible before adding it to the sauce. It's a great recipe if done correctly.Read more
recipe Florentine Mac and Cheese and Roast Chicken Sausage Meatballs
Carla Pembroke Pines, FL 11-15-2009
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Really yummy!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I made this yesterday and my boyfriend and i loved it!! There may be a chance the pasta could turn out a little dry so i just... made more of the sauce, other than that i will make this again, my boyfriend couldnt get enough of the meatballs!!Read more