Mac and Cheese Grilled Cheese with Bacon Two Ways
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 4 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 4 servings
- Calories
- 1257
- Total Fat
- 74
- Saturated Fat
- 37
- Carbohydrates
- 94
- Dietary Fiber
- 5
- Sugar
- 20
- Protein
- 53
- Cholesterol
- 187
- Sodium
- 2172
- Total: 1 hr 55 min
- Prep: 15 min
- Inactive: 1 hr
- Cook: 40 min
Ingredients
4 cups Easy Mac and Cheese, recipe follows
8 slices country white bread, buttered
4 slices American cheese
8 slices thick-cut smoked bacon, cooked
2 Roma tomatoes, sliced into 1/4-inch slices, optional
Hot sauce, such as Frank's, optional
Easy Mac and Cheese:
8 ounces elbow macaroni
Kosher salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
8 ounce processed cheese, such as Velveeta
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp yellow Cheddar
Splash hot sauce, or pinch of cayenne
Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Evenly spread the Easy Mac and Cheese in an 8-inch square baking dish. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. Cut the mac and cheese into 4 equal-size squares.
- Preheat a griddle over medium-low heat. Place each mac and cheese square on a slice of bread, top with 1 slice American cheese and 2 slices bacon. Top with a second piece of bread and griddle the sandwich until golden and warm, about 4 minutes per side. Repeat with the remaining ingredients. Serve.
- For the adults, toss the tomatoes in some hot sauce and add on top of the bacon before griddling your sandwich.
Easy Mac and Cheese:
- Cook the macaroni in a large pot of boiling salted water to al dente and drain.
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepot over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and stir for a couple of minutes, making sure it's free of lumps and the flour taste is cooked out. Stir in the milk, bring to a simmer and cook over medium-low until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the processed cheese and Cheddar until melted, add the hot sauce and fold in the macaroni. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.