Surprisingly, the fussiest eaters love this enjoyable macaroni dish

Emily Monaco

Contributing Writer

Spice up traditional mac and cheese by combining the classic comfort food with a bar snack staple: buffalo chicken. In this recipe, a gooey mac and cheese gets jazzed up with Buffalo sauce and shredded rotisserie chicken, adding tons of flavor and protein. Pockets of blue cheese evoke everyone's favorite dipping sauce for the classic chicken dish.

This recipe can easily be adapted to suit your family's tastes. Add more or less hot sauce according to your love of spice. And if blue cheese isn't your jam, consider enhancing the panko topping with a ranch seasoning packet instead. Either way, it's sure to make a delicious dinnertime dish that will soon become a household staple.

Cooktop Cove

Buffalo chicken mac and cheese

20 minutes

30 minutes

50 minutes

8 ounces macaroni

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups milk

1 teaspoon garlic powder

4 ounces cream cheese

1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese, divided

1/2 cup buffalo hot sauce

1 1/2 cups cooked, shredded chicken

1 cup blue cheese crumbles, divided

1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs

Salt and pepper

Heat oven to 350 F.

Cook the macaroni according to package directions, drain, and set aside.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until a smooth paste forms.

Drizzle in the milk by the quarter-cupful, whisking all the time, until a smooth, thick sauce forms.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the garlic powder, cream cheese, and 2 cups of cheddar cheese. Whisk until smooth, and season with salt and pepper.

In a bowl, combine the cheese sauce, cooked pasta, hot sauce and shredded chicken. Toss until well-combined.

Carefully fold in half of the blue cheese crumbles to ensure they are well-distributed but do not fully melt into the sauce.

Transfer the macaroni mixture to a greased 9-by-13 baking dish.

Top with the remaining cheddar and blue cheeses.

Sprinkle the panko over the top of the macaroni.

Bake for 15 minutes, and serve hot.

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