Vivo O Sonho

Macaroni and cheese is one of our favorite comfort foods. I’ve made it a kazillion ways using different varieties of cheese, baked, straight from the pot, with a bread crumb topping, and without.

This recipe was invented because I had a half cup of Alfredo sauce in my fridge and didn’t want it to go to waste. I figured it would meld well with the other ingredients I had on hand, and I was right! It was ooey, gooey cheesy and so easy to throw together.

Variations: Choose your own cheese blends and try different flavors of creamed soup and Alfredo sauce. (The sauce I had was garlic flavored; otherwise I would have added a couple of minced garlic cloves as we are garlic lovers.) Add a diced jalapeno pepper or a dash of cayenne if you like it spicy. Use different pasta shapes, but I suggest staying with one that will hold the cheese, such as shells, elbow or penne.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups uncooked small shell pasta
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (I used a combo of white and sharp)
• 1/2 cup Alfredo sauce
• 1 – 10.5 oz can cream of mushroom soup
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup milk

Topping:

• 4 T melted butter
• 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs (you can also use Panko or plain flavor)
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Cook the pasta until just al dente (don’t overcook), drain and set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix the shredded cheddar cheese, Alfredo sauce, cream soup, sour cream and milk until combined.
• Add the cooked pasta and mix well.
• Pour into a greased 8 x 8 glass baking dish.
• Melt the butter, remove from heat and add the Parm cheese and bread crumbs and mix until fully combined.
• Spread the crumb mixture on top of the pasta.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until the pasta is bubbling and the topping is golden brown.
• Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 4-6.