Buffalo Mac’n’Cheese

I’m downright excited! You know why? This week is my mom’s birthday week (Happy Birthday Mom!!!) and for her birthday we are headed to New York City. A girls weekend to be filled with shopping, Mary Poppins and cupcakes! I’ve been to New York a many number of times, but this will only be Mom’s second trip to the big city. Second trip in the winter, maybe the third time we should shoot for the summer?

Say hello to delicious

There are many things that I love doing while in New York. In general I’ll be there with boyfriend and we love to wander the streets, popping into cute shops we find along the way. Every time we go, we find ourselves in someplace we’ve never been before. The first few times we visited the city (back in the summer of 2003) we were without our handy iPhones. We relied on guidebooks and maps to help us find our way through the streets. When it was time for a meal we would wander aimlessly, somehow missing all of the restaurants along the way. How? I have no idea.

These days we have GPS, Open Table and a better sense of direction. The last few trips to the city we went with more of a plan, places we wanted to visit and reservations. We’ve dined at Asian fusion joints, American bistros and English pubs, but my favorite place is just a hole in the wall. Located on 12th St near 1st Ave is S’mac. What do they serve? Macaroni and cheese. And it’s delicious.

Sadly S’mac is in New York and I am not. So, I decided that it was necessary to replicate my favorite dish, the Buffalo Mac’n’Cheese. And maybe to drag my mom to S’mac next weekend…

Buffalo Mac’n’Cheese

An Original WITK Recipe

2 cups elbow macaroni
3 chicken breasts (about 1 pound)
Olive oil
Kosher Salt
4 tbsp butter
¼ cup flour
2 cups whole milk
2 cups mild cheddar
1/3 cup Franks Red Hot wing sauce
½ cup blue cheese, crumbled
½ cup panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 F. Place 6 medium ramekins on a baking sheet.

Cook macaroni according to package instructions. Drain and return to pot to keep warm.

Coat chicken with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill (or sauté) chicken until cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside for five minutes. Cut into bite-size pieces.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add flour and whisk together until there are no lumps. Cook for 2 minutes. Slowly add milk, whisking continuously, until all is combined. Add cheese and hot sauce and whisk together.

Combine noodles, chicken and sauce, stir together. Divide evenly among ramekins (about 1 cup per ramekin). Combine blue cheese and panko crumbs and sprinkle over the noodles. Place ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.