
I love playing around with mac and cheese. My kids will eat it any way they can get it... homemade
or right out of the blue box (Kraft). I love the spicy flavors of this with the poblano peppers and
my kids loved it too. I actually made the recipe twice before posting it. The original recipe I worked on was great, but I did not like the pasta I used initially. I used orzo pasta and it was more like a risotto fake out than a mac and cheese. I have posted a picture of the first orzo dish to the right. This does have a few steps to it... but it's really pretty easy. I love using a gas stove to roast the poblano peppers easily, but you can also broil them in the oven. The flavors are smokey, spicy and fantastic.
Ingredients:
3 large poblano peppers
1 cup chicken stock * or water/bullion equivalent
1 medium onion chopped
1 red or orange bell pepper chopped
2-3 cloves garlic minced or grated
1 tsp cumin powder
red chili flakes to taste
salt and pepper to taste
2-3 Tbs flour
2-3 Tbs butter/margarine
1lb box pasta any shape cooked
2 cups cheese divided
Directions:

Take clean dry poblano peppers and roast over an open flame or broil in the oven until outside is blackened. Place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap for 15-20 minutes so the skins can easily come off.

Remove outer blackened skin. I use a paper towel to rub the charred skin off and that works well without making a mess on your hands. Cut out the core and coarsely chop them. Put into a food processor and blend with 1 cup of chicken broth or water/bullion equivalent and make a poblano puree.

Next boil pasta in salted water and drain 1 minute shy of fully cooked. In a large pan heat 1 Tbs canola oil and saute onions, peppers and garlic with some salt and pepper.

When onions are softened, add cumin and red chili flakes. Then add 2-3 Tbs butter and 2-3 Tbs flour to pan. Stir until flour is cooked and looks like wet sand.

Add roasted poblano puree and stir well. Melt in cheese 3/4 of the cheese.

Add pasta to cheese sauce and mix well. Pour mac and cheese into baking dish. Top with remaining cheese and bake in 375 oven for 20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and melted. Serve hot. Enjoy.

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You make mac and cheese exotic and gourmet :)
ReplyDeleteCheers
Choc Chip Uru
This version Mac and cheese sound and looks very tasty,I love the blend different spices on this :)
ReplyDeleteOh yum! Peppers in with my favorite comfort food. I am there!
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Oh yum! I don't even care if it looks like a risotto fake out...I'll take a real-made mac and cheese any way I can get it. I love the cumin and onion addition, as well as the roasted poblanos. In fact, I was thinking that caramelizing the onions would give a sweet counterpart to the smoke and heat from the chiles. Hmmmmm.
ReplyDeleteRamona, my dear....u will kill us with all these yummy food <3 Super duper Like for this one. Have been craving to make mac n cheese for a long time now, but plain mac n cheese is never on my list. Love this jazzed up version ;)
ReplyDeleteLovely recipe Romana.. in love with th idea of making the sauce out of Peppers.. what a tangy flavour they must have provided..
ReplyDeletebook marked !! Glad to follow you :)
Ramona this looks scrumptious, and I love the Mexican touch to your mac & cheese! We can't get poblanos here, unfortunately, otherwise I'd be giving your recipe a try.
ReplyDeleteP.S.
Happy Birthday darling!! May you have a beautiful day surrounded by your loved ones. xxxx
What a gorgeous mac and cheese! A bit of spice makes it perfect! It's your birthday??? Hope it's as wonderful as you are...xo
ReplyDeleteI love what you did with this dish and it looks so good. Wishing you the best of birthdays!
ReplyDeleteG'day and YUM!!! LOVE Mac and Cheese, TRUE!
ReplyDeleteLove your photos and Happy Birthday to you!
Cheers!
Joanne
what's On The List
http://www.whatsonthelist.net
Ramona, this sounds AMAZING! I also love to play around with mac 'n cheese, but I need to catch up to you and get more creative! :) This is going to be added to my mac 'n cheese MUST TRY list! YUM!
ReplyDeleteNothing like a comforting mac 'n cheese, and adding poblano peppers is a great idea! Nice!
ReplyDeletedelicious...can't wait to try now
ReplyDeleteTasty Appetite
You make a complete meal out of mac & cheese! Looks delicious!
ReplyDeletenice kick'in baked mac and cheese....
ReplyDeletei love the smokey flavour on the pepper...
Now that's a mac 'n cheese worth queuing up for :) It looks really good.
ReplyDeleteHow many people would you say it serves?
ReplyDeleteIt all depends on if it's being served as a main dish or a side dish. I say for a main dish 4-6 people as a side dish 8-12. :) Hope you enjoy. :)
DeleteThis looks gorgeous and delicious! I would probably substitute jalapeno or another type of chile since we don't get poblanos here in Thailand. Yum yum yum!
ReplyDeleteLoved this! Husband would not stop talking about it! Used fresh poblano from the garden! Will def make again! Thank you!!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you enjoyed it!! :)
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