Post trip meal
One of the things I enjoy during the summer is traveling. Trips to the beach are usually centered around where we are going to eat. When I’m on vacation, I love to try all kinds of foods! FOMO while traveling is a thing. Even though I (try to) eat everything in moderation, I still eat everything!
I am by nature a planner. I hate surprises. If I have a list to check off, I am happy. This means that on the weeks leading up to a trip, I will eat anything from the fridge in a binge of clean-out meals. This leaves a lonely jar of jam and mustard behind, no milk to spoil or vegetables to rot while I am gone.
Although a vacation usually leaves me feeling refreshed and recharged mentally, when it comes to my body, I sometimes feel l like I need a vacation from my vacation when it’s all said and done. Welcome home! You have no food in the house and you must eat vegetables. That’s where frozen vegetables that steam in their own package are a must. Steam some frozen broccoli, green beans, vegetable medley, carrots, peas, etc.
Once I’m back home, being intentional about what I eat helps me come down softly from the “treat yo self” high of a week away, and makes it easier to move forward with a renewed sense of energy and optimism. I’ve found that certain foods help me get my feet back on the ground after a vacation, and that cooking at home in the weeks after a trip helps ease the inevitable sting of blown travel budgets, too.
This week’s recipe is for Fiesta Mac and Cheese. This casserole can be made and then frozen to eat later. It is baked from frozen so there is no thawing when you get home after a long day’s driving. Just pop it in the oven and bake while you microwave a bag of veggies to go with it.
Fiesta Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 red onions, halved and thinly sliced
2 ears corn, shucked and kernels removed (about 1 1/2 cups)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Two 4-ounce cans diced green chiles
6 tablespoons salted butter, plus more for the pan
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups whole milk
2/3 cup half-and-half
3 tablespoons adobo sauce from canned chipotles
1 cup cubed processed cheese, such as Velveeta
2 cups freshly grated Monterey Jack cheese
2 cups freshly grated pepper jack cheese
One 10-ounce can diced tomatoes and chiles,
undrained
1 cup tortilla chips, crushed
Chili powder, for sprinkling
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro ( I leave off the cilantro)
Directions:
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Cook the macaroni in the
boiling water until just undercooked. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet
over medium-high heat. Add the red onion and corn and
season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the onion turns golden brown and the corn
begins to blister, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the green chiles to combine. Set aside.
To make the sauce, melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour,
whisking to combine. Let the roux cook for a minute or so, whisking constantly. Pour in
the milk, whisking constantly, followed by 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Cook
the white sauce until thick and bubbly, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the half-and-half and adobo
sauce. Add the processed cheese, 1 cup of the Monterey Jack and 1 cup of the pepper jack
and continue to cook, stirring, until the cheese all melts. Add the cooked macaroni and stir
to coat. Fold in the diced tomatoes and chiles.
Butter a 9-by-13-inch disposable foil pan. Layer with half of the macaroni mixture, then
half the corn mixture. Repeat the layers, ending with the corn mixture. Sprinkle the
remaining 1 cup Monterey Jack and 1 cup pepper jack over the top. Sprinkle the crushed
tortilla chips all over the cheese, then sprinkle with chili powder.
To bake immediately, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake until bubbly and hot, 20
to 25 minutes. Sprinkle over the chopped cilantro and serve.
To freeze the casserole for later, let cool completely, then cover with aluminum foil, fold
over the edges to seal and freeze.
If cooking from frozen, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Cook, covered, for 50 minutes, then uncover and bake until light brown and bubbly,
about another 20 minutes.
