Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese
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Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese is the ultimate comfort food. It has creamy cheese, salty bacon, and sautéed kale and is topped with buttery, crunchy crushed crackers. Mouth-watering!
I was challenged to use bacon, kale, oyster crackers, and Sargento Chef Blend 4 State Cheddar in a recipe for a the “Chopped at Home” Challenge. I’ve always been a purist when it comes to my mac n cheese, but I know immediately that I wanted to make Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese with the required ingredients.
My instincts were right, the combination of hearty kale with salty bacon and creamy shredded cheese is a winning combination. Top it with buttery crushed crackers and this is comfort food at its best! It’ll have everyone begging for seconds!
You can serve this recipe as a main course, it’s definitely hearty enough. You may want to serve it as a side. It would be a tasty accompaniment to steak, chicken, or fish.
Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese tips
- You may substitute any pasta in this recipe. I used shells simply because I had them on hand.
- I suggest reading through the recipe a couple of times before beginning. Also, measure your ingredients beforehand. This is not a difficult recipe, but it goes fast at the end.
- Although you can substitute different flavors of cheese, I prefer cheddar in this recipe. It pairs nicely with the kale and bacon.
- I used the curly variety of kale, it was all that was available to me at the grocery store. You can certainly experiment with the other types.
Tips on Kale
- When choosing kale, look for dark in color and medium in size. The leaves should not have any dark or yellow spots.
- Kale is a nutritional powerhouse. It is rich in vitamins A, C, and K as well as high in calcium and iron.
- Make fruit smoothies with kale. I was surprised that you can’t taste spinach or kale in smoothies. Use this smoothie recipe and substitute kale and your favorite fruits.
While you’re here, check out these recipes
- Hamburger Steak with Onions and Brown Gravy Recipe
- Balsamic Butter Sauce over New York Strip Steaks
- Creamy Italian Sausage Soup
- Nine 20-minute Dinner Recipes
- How to Make a Charcuterie Board
- Captain Rodney’s Dip
- Chocolate Mousse Cake
Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese
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Ingredients
- 1/2 pound pasta
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 pound bacon
- 1 shallot minced (about 2 tablespoon
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- 7.5 ounces cheddar cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- salt you may not need salt since cheese is salty
- 2 cups kale
- 1/3 cup oyster crackers crushed
- 1 tablespoon butter or vegetable oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Wash kale and cut into large pieces
- In a large 10 to 12-inch oven-safe skillet, cook bacon to crisp. Remove from pan and drain. Chop into large pieces. Reserve drippings
- In a large pot, salt the water and boil the pasta to al dente
- Remove all but about 1 tablespoon of the bacon drippings. Heat pan to medium, add shallot and kale. Saute 1 to 2 minutes until kale is wilted. Remove to a platter with a slotted spoon.
- Add 2 to 3 tablespoon more of the bacon drippings to the pan. Add flour, nutmeg, and pepper. Cook 1 to 2 minutes until lightly browned. Add milk and whisk until smooth. Cook until the mixture begins to thicken. Add cheese and stir until cheese melts.
- Add pasta, kale, shallots, and bacon to the cheese sauce. Gently stir to combine.
- In a small bowl, add butter or oil to crushed crackers and mix to combine.
- Top pasta mixture with crushed crackers.
- Bake at 350°F until the mixture is hot throughout and crumbs begin to brown.
- Remove from oven, allow to cool 5 minutes. Serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are important to you, I recommend calculating them yourself.
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