One Pan Apple Butter Mac and Cheese
One of the weirdest things about being a food blogger is that a simple cold can leave you totally out of commission. I’m on week two of a terrible one and well, it’s kind of impossible to test recipes when you can’t actually taste anything. Now that I’m finally starting to feel a little better, I’m craving soup, pasta, and other comfort foods like this mac and cheese, which has been making a regular appearance on our dinner table all winter.
I saw this one pot technique, where you boil the macaroni in milk instead of water, on White on Rice Couple ages ago. I didn’t try it right away, but it had been tugging at the back of my mind for a while. Then, over the fall, I came across this apple sauce mac and cheese from Adventures in Cooking and I knew it was finally time to give it a try.
The pasta releases starch into the milk as it cooks, resulting in the richest, creamiest mac and cheese I’ve ever eaten. It’s a little insane how creamy it is. Apple butter might sound like a weird addition – and I’ll admit that it is – but it works. (Just like cheddar melted over a piece of apple pie is an unexpectedly delicious treat.)
One Pan Apple Butter Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 2 cups miniature shell shaped pasta I used Barilla FiberPlus
- 2 cups skim milk
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup apple butter
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Combine the uncooked pasta, milk, and garlic powder in a 5-quart pan. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring frequently, until the milk had absorbed and the pasta is soft – 15-20 minutes. Stir in the cheese and apple butter. Remove from heat and let sit, covered, for 5 minutes. Stir again and season with salt and pepper before serving.
You seriously have me drooling over here…I would have never thought to put apple butter and mac and cheese together!
I’m the queen of one-pot meals–must make try this soon. And adding apple butter… genius!
Apples and cheese are AWESOME together, so I totally think this would be incredibly delicious!!
I know what you mean with being sick, I had the flu last month, and now I have some stupid head cold. It sucks, but pasta dishes like this make us feel so much better!
So sorry to hear you are under the weather! It’s been a rough winter for colds at our house too. I can think of no better way to comfort a cold than this scrumptious dish!
I’m always looking for ways to use apple butter – love this idea! Thank you!
Hope you feel better soon sweets!
Hope you feel better soon! And I never would have thought of adding apple butter, but that’s a great idea!
Ooo I’m definitely super intrigued and am going to have to try this pasta-in-milk method. I wonder if it would also work for fettuccine alfredo…
Hope you feel better love!
Ugh, so sorry to hear you’ve been sick. I know the feeling – I get terrible sinus infections way too frequently (have been putting off surgery for far too long), and not being able to taste is THE WORST. It’s like “what’s the point?” when you’re eating, right?
On the upside, I can practically taste this recipe just by reading the ingredient list. Love the combo of the sweet apple butter with the sharp cheese. So smart!