Fall Break!

What is better way to start break, than to make a dinner the kids would be excited about. One of my kids favorite dishes is macaroni and cheese. I did add a protein, making it a delicious meal.

I feed five people. Three of those people are small, and don't eat a whole lot yet. So, I can get away with laying out just one chicken breast. The chicken breasts I do have are on the larger side, and they can be cut into thin pieces giving me three pieces of meat to work with. Once I get them cut, I pound them out with a meat tenderizer. I added salt and pepper to the chicken, and set it aside.

This was the perfect time for me to prep my breading station. In one plate, I put a half cup of flour, pinch of salt, pinch of pepper, and a dash of parmesan cheese. In the second plate, I wisk two eggs. In the third plate, I put bread crumbs, with a dash of parmesan cheese. I also get a cup of shredded mild cheddar cheese, half a cup of parmesan cheese, and two tablespoon of shredded asiago cheese combined in a bowl.

Now it's time to get cooking. I get some salty water boiling for shell shaped noodles, then I get veggie oil heating up in my cast iron skillet. Once the water is boiling, I add the noodle's, allowing them to cook until they have a slight crunch to them. I like to finish them off in the cheese sauce later on. While the noodles are boiling away, I begin my breading process for the chicken.

I dip this chicken first in the flour mixture, then I dip it in the egg mixture, while finishing it off by dipping it in the bread crumb mixture. Once the chicken is completely coated, I place it in the hot oil. Frying the chicken in the cast iron skillet allows me to use the leftover oil to make a roux for the cheese sauce. I cook the chicken until it is golden brown. I placed the cooked chicken on a cooling rack, and let them rest while I make the sauce.

As my chicken was frying, my pasta needed to be removed from the stove. I put the noodles in a strainer, and let them sit in the sink until it was time to add them to the sauce. I do not rinse the noodles. Leaving them sticky, allows the sauce to coat the noodle perfectly.

In the hot oil, I add a half cup of chopped onions. When they become translucent I added three chopped garlic cloves to the pan. Then, I added a fourth cup of flour to the oil, onions, and garlic. I let the roux cook for approximately five minutes. I added about three cups of milk to the pan, and whisked the mixture until it became smooth. As soon as it got warm I added the cheeses I set aside earlier. As soon as the cheese is melted, I added the noodles allowing them to finish cooking in the sauce. This did not take long, and it was time to serve.

This dish was delicious! Using the oil from the chicken really made the dish come together, and left us saying "yum" after each bite. Be blessed, and I hope you enjoy this as much as my family, and I did.