Mel'z 20 Minute Parmesan Mac & Cheese

A few months ago after a family camping trip I got sick & was in a rush to get dinner done. 

Matt was almost home, the kids were grumpy, & I was physically & mentally drained. 

So i grabbed a few staples & decided to see what happened. 

20 min later dinner was served!

This happened & i think its quite good. 

So ill share with you all & you can tell me what you think. 

Yeah? 

Cool. 

Here we go.

Ingredients:

1 LB Fusilli Pasta

4 Tsp Garlic Powder

3 C. Parmesan

1 C. Cheddar

Broccoli Florets (to taste)

2 Tbs Italian Seasoning

1 Tsp Cayenne

1Tbs Butter or Margarine

3 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream or 3 cups Half & Half for a lighter version

1 Cup Water 

Directions:

Boil pasta until its half way done & drain

Add Butter & all wet ingredients.

Turn to Medium Heat. 

Add Cayenne, Garlic Powder & Italian seasoning to pot

Once the liquid starts to boil again add 1/2 the cheese & stir frequently adding the rest of the cheese in slowly. Sauce will thicken pretty fast after this so stir diligently until pasta is done. 

Add broccoli on top pr mix in (as I did) 

Add Salt & Pepper to taste.

This is a pretty versatile recipe & i have added fresh garlic & chopped sauteed onions to it, green onions top it very well as well. 

Get creative! 

As always if you use this or any of my recipes please let me know how it came out. 

I love feedback!

Enjoy!

Pig Eyes Casserole

I am so happy to have this recipe for you all today! This is a very unique recipe that I have never seen made by anyone else and it was sheer inspiration that led to this recipe. Its simple, yes...but it packs a powerful flavor punch! And it will help you stretch your budget. (and your pant size if you're not careful lol)

Matt & I were trying to figure out what kind of casserole we could make with what we had on hand and that would give us enough for leftovers the next day. I roamed around pinterest for awhile and saw some great recipes but none of which I thought had the flavor i wanted. Well i started thinking about all the casseroles that my mom and grandmother used to make and the updated versions of those that I've seen lately and Matt and I came up with this! Matt calls it Pig Eyes Casserole (because of the sausage) which is weird but its also funny and cute. 

Ingredients:

Casserole

1 30 oz Bag of Potatoes O'brien (you can sub with Southern Style or even tater tots but I prefer O'brien because of the veggies) 

2 Packs of Frozen Sausage Links (you can brown ahead of time if you wish)

1 whole onion minced or chopped finely

1 cup Sour Cream

1 Prepared Package of Sausage Gravy 

1 can of Cream of Chicken Soup

1 1/2 cups of Cheddar Cheese

1/2 cup of Shaved Parmesan Cheese 

Salt & Pepper to taste

Topping Ingredients:

3 cups Corn Flakes

3 tbs Butter or Margarine (melted)

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 350

Combine melted butter & corn flakes until all flakes are coated with butter

Set aside.

In large bowl mix onion, sour cream, gravy, cream of chicken soup, both cheeses, potatoes and sausage together until very well mixed. 

Pour into large casserole dish (i used a 9x13 and it fit perfect) and pat even.

Take the Topping and sprinkle evenly on top of casserole

Bake at 350 for 30 to 40 minutes. 

This recipe will knock your socks off!!