Mac and Cheese with Roasted Poblano Chiles

Kara and I have been looking for quite some time for a good mac and cheese recipe. I think we finally found it - we loved this dish! Even though this is a slightly spicy recipe, variations should be pretty easy. The hardest part of the recipe was timing everything - I'd suggest doing the peppers first, and putting the noodles in to cook about when you start the Bechamel sauce.

Mac and Cheese
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 large fresh poblano chiles
Sea salt
1 lb dried pasta
4 cups hot Bechamel sauce (recipe included)
8 oz sharp white cheddar, grated
8 oz sharp orange cheddar, grated
8 oz Parmigiano-Reggiano or Asiago, grated
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp Hungarian paprika
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce
1/2 c breadcrumbs

Bechamel sauce
6 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 c unbleached all-purpose flour
4 c whole milk, heated till steaming
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg

Peppers:
Lay chiles on the sides on a gas burner and turn flame on high. Roast chiles, turning with tongs, until skins are evenly charred, about 10 minutes. (We put them in the oven on high broil).
Steam until cool in a closed paper bag (we put them in a covered bowl), about 15 minutes. Under cold running water, rub off burned peel. Then discard stems, core and devein chiles, scraping away all seeds, and cut into long thin strips.

Pasta:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to instructions on package until just tender. Drain pasta and transfer to a large bowl (do not rinse) and toss with butter.

Bechamel Sauce:
Melt 6 tablespoons butter over low heat. Whisk in flour and cook, whisking often, without allowing flour to brown, about 4 minutes. Remove pan from heat and whisk in hot milk. Add salt and nutmeg (and black pepper, if desired). Return to medium heat and bring to simmer. Continue to cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sauce has thickened to texture of melted ice cream, about 10 minutes.
Add cayenne, paprika, mustard, and Tabasco to sauce.
Stir all but one cup of the grated cheeses into the bechamel sauce. Heat, stirring until cheese just melt and sauce is smooth.

Pour the sauces over the pasta in the bowl. Add chiles and stir. Spoon into a buttered 9x13 baking dish . Top with remaining cheese and breadcrumbs.

Bake at 400 until pasta is heated through, sauce is bubbling, and top is browned, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand on a rack for 5 minutes. Serves 8.

Kung Pao Chicken

This recipe is very tasty and is quite similar to the Spicy Chicken with Snow Peas recipe I just posted. I love the hot chile paste and I always love water chestnuts!

Kung Pao Chicken

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into chunks
2 tablespoons white wine (or not - I just left this out)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
2 tablespoons cornstarch, dissolved in 2 tablespoons water
1 ounce hot chile paste
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
2 teaspoons brown sugar
4 green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts
4 ounces chopped peanuts

To Make Marinade: Combine 1 tablespoon wine, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon cornstarch/water mixture and mix together. Place chicken pieces in a glass dish or bowl and add marinade. Toss to coat. Cover dish and place in refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

To Make Sauce: In a small bowl combine 1 tablespoon wine, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon cornstarch/water mixture, chili paste, vinegar and sugar. Mix together and add green onion, garlic, water chestnuts and peanuts. In a medium skillet, heat sauce slowly until aromatic.

Meanwhile, remove chicken from marinade and saute in a large skillet until meat is white and juices run clear. When sauce is aromatic, add sauteed chicken to it and let simmer together until sauce thickens.

Perhaps less cornstarch or more water if you like it thicker and make double or triple the sauce.

Spicy Chicken with Snow Peas

We had a big bag of snow peas to use so I tried a few new recipes. I'm realizing that chile paste is a great way to really kick up the spiciness.

Spicy Chicken with Snow Peas

Olive oil
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1 pouch (3.5 ounces) boil-in-a-bag long grain brown rice
2 Tablespoons sugar
3 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
2 Teaspoons chile paste with garlic
1 teaspoon bottled fresh ginger
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1.5 cups matchstick cut carrots
1 cup thinly sliced red bell peppers
2 cups snow peas, trimmed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup unsalted, dry roasted peanuts, chopped

Place 1 Tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add chicken cubes and cook until all sides have turned white and the center is no longer pink, about 7-10 minutes. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
Start cooking rice according to directions on the package, but omit the salt and fat. Once rice is done cooking remove from heat, but keep warm.

Combine sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, chile paste and ground ginger in a small bowl.

Coat the skillet with cooking spray and add sesame oil, heat over medium-high heat. Add the carrots and bell peppers, saute for 2-minutes. Add the cubed chicken and snow peas to the pan and saute for an additional 1-minute. Remove carrot, pepper, chicken, snow pea mixture from the pan and set aside.

Return pan to the stove; over medium-high heat add soy sauce mixture to the pan and bring to a boil. Cook mixture until it has reduced to 1/4 cup (about 1.5 minutes) stirring constantly.

Divide the rice amongst four plates and place chicken/vegetable mixture over the rice. Drizzle 1 Tablespoon of sauce over each plate and top with 4 teaspoons of chopped peanuts. This recipe serves 4.