Easy Peasy Ham Mac and Cheesey

My kids are mac and cheese FANATICS, and they inspired me to come up with this kid-friendly, easy and tasty recipe.

Now, personally, I prefer a baked mac and cheese. However, for this recipe I decided that stove top was the way to go. This way all of the cheese is ooey-gooey and it cooks in much less time...a very important thing with too little hungry ones.

I used Wisconsin Swiss and Wisconsin Cheddar in this recipe along with cubed cooked ham (that I just picked up from my deli) and some frozen peas for color and too sneak in some veggies (hee, hee). The result....a perfect, kid-friendly meal that any grown-up will love too! Both of the kids really loved this dinner and requested it for lunch the next day. My son even exclaimed that it was the BEST mac and cheese he ever had! Endorsed by an expert!


Ingredients:

1 pound mini fusilli pasta (or you may use mini penne or elbow macaroni)
6 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup flour
3 1/2 cups milk
2 cups (8 ounces) Wisconsin Swiss Cheese, shredded
3 cups (12 ounces) Wisconsin Cheddar Cheese, shredded
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt, more to taste
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3/4 cup cooked ham, diced
1 cup frozen baby peas, thawed

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.

In a large pot, melt the butter and sauté the onions for about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour until well blended. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add the milk; stir well. Add in the cheeses, mustard, paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Continue to cook and stir until smooth, hot and thickened. Stir in the ham, peas and cooked/drained pasta. Stir well until heated through.

Source: Chef Mommy, developed for the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board. I received compensation to create this recipe.