Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese

Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese is the ultimate comfort food. It has creamy cheese, salty bacon, sautéed kale and 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 where right, the combination of hearty kale with salty bacon and creamy Sargento shredded cheese is a winning combination. Top it with buttery crushed crackers and this is comfort food at it’s 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

1. You may substitute any pasta in this recipe. I used shells simply because I had them on hand.
2. 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.
3. Although you can substitute different flavors of cheese, I prefer cheddar in this recipe. It pairs nicely with the kale and bacon.
4. 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

1. When choosing kale, look for dark in color and medium in size. The leaves should not have any dark or yellow spots.
2. Kale is a nutritional powerhouse. It is rich in Vitamin A, C, K as well as high in calcium and iron.
3. 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.

Print

Bacon Kale Mac n Cheese

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

30 mins

Total Time

40 mins

 

Servings: 10 -12

Author: Paula Jones

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 milk
• 7.5 ounce package Sargento Chef Blends 4 State Cheddar
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• salt to taste you may not need salt since cheese is salty
• 2 cups kale
• 1/3 cup oyster crackers crused
• 1 tablespoon butter or vegetable oil

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Wash kale and cut into large pieces
3. In large 10 to 12 inch oven-safe skillet, cook bacon to crisp. Remove from pan and drain. Chop into large pieces. Reserve drippings
4. In a large pot, salt water and boil pasta to al dente
5. 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.
6. Add 2 to 3 tablespoon more of the bacon drippings to pan. Add flour, nutmeg and pepper. Cook 1 to 2 minutes until lightly browned. Add milk and whisk until smooth. Cook until mixture begins to thicken. Add cheese and stir until cheese melts.
7. Add pasta, kale, shallots and bacon to to cheese sauce. Gently stir to combine.
8. In a small bowl, add butter or oil to crushed crackers and mix to combine.
9. Top pasta mixture with crushed crackers.
10. Bake in 350 oven until mixture is hot throughout and crumbs begin to brown.
11. Remove from oven, allow to cool 5 minutes. Serve hot.

Recipe Notes

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For more information on the Chopped at Home challenge and a chance to win $10,000 visit here. Follow Sargento on Pinterst for recipe inspiration or for product information visit Sargento.com.

Available in 30 versatile varieties, unique blends and distinct cuts, Sargento Shredded Cheese is always cut from blocks of 100% real, natural cheese. For more inspiration, check out the Sargento Pinterest page Pinterest.com/sargentocheese/ or visit Sargento.com for more information. The Chopped at Home Challenge gives viewers a chance to create their best recipe using the selected basket ingredients, including Sargento Shredded Cheese, for a chance to win $10,000!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Sargento. The opinions and text are all mine.