Friday Foodie Affair: Crockpot Mac & Cheese

This Friday Foodie Affiair is a twofer…two recipes in one. First will be Crockpot Mac & Cheese and second will be the Stewed Tomatoes I made to go with it.

Crockpot Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:

16 ounces cooked macaroni

16 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, cubed

16 ounces Colby cheese, Cubed

16 ounces Velveeta, Cubed

1 stick of butter, cut into slices

16 ounces milk

salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

Spray crockpot lightly with cooking spray. Layer 1/3 of the macaroni in the bottom. Layer half of cheese, butter, salt, & pepper. Repeat, ending with last 1/3 of macaroni on top. Pour milk over mixture.

Cook on low for about 4 hours and stir about mid-way.

My Thoughts:

The prep work went off without a hitch…cut cheese, cut more cheese, cut butter, cut more cheese. Seriously, there’s a ridiculous amount of cheese in this! It’s insane! Anyway, I successfully cooked, cubed, and layered everything and then set it to do its own thing.

At about 2.5-3 hours I couldn’t take it anymore, I had to try it. Unfortunately, it was like Pringles, once you pop you just can’t stop. I would make up reasons to go to the kitchen just so I could sneak a bite.  It was delish and kept getting better and better as it cooked.  I think at 3.5 hours I gave up and just ate a bowl.

I was good but if I make it again there will have to be some changes. For one, it’s a huge amount of mac and cheese for just two people. That normally wouldn’t be a problem because leftover mac n cheese is amazeballs…usually. That wasn’t quite the case this time.  It wasn’t bad but the leftovers definitely didn’t wow me like it did the first time around.

Next time (if there is a next time) I will use less cheese and butter…and there’s a good chance I’ll switch to bags of shredded cheese instead of taking the time to cube it.

Recipe Source: shortstopblog.com

Photo Source: Me :)

Stewed Tomatoes

 (with my trusty smilie spoon :))

Ingredients:

12 tomatoes

1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon salt

Pepper

1 teaspoon sugar; 2 if more sweetness is preferred

1 tablespoon cornflour dissolved in a little cold water for thickening (optional)

Directions:

1. Pour boiling water over the tomatoes to remove the skins. Alternatively, you can blanch the tomatoes: Boil enough water to cover your tomatoes. Place tomatoes in the boiling water for about 30 seconds, then transfer them to a bowl of ice water. When the tomatoes are cool enough to touch, remove the skins.

2. Cut the tomatoes into pieces. Add the butter, salt, pepper, and sugar.

3. Cook slowly over low heat (stew) for half an hour.

4. Thicken if desired with cornstarch

My Thoughts:

Growing up my Grandma used to make awesome stewed tomatoes. There were sweet and well... perfect. How she did it, I’m not sure BUT I wanted to at least try my hand at it. This version turned out ok but certainly not like I remember growing up. I think next time I’ll try to make it a little sweeter or try a whole new recipe.

Recipe Source: Wikihow

Photo Source: Me :)