Chicken Parmesan Mac & Cheese (small batch)

 

Another cheap, cheerful and easy dish sized for two to three people to share with you today.  Chicken Parmesan Mac & Cheese.  I saw this recipe on This Is Not Diet Food and was instantly intrigued.  It sounded too good to pass by! 

But to be honest, most of the recipes on that blog sound too good to pass by!  It is definitely not diet food for sure.  Everything looks delicious!  But once in a blue moon, it never hurts to indulge a tiny bit.

It has been quite a while since I have wanted to make or eat Chicken Parmesan.  I got food poisoning once, about 10 years ago after eating some and it had not appealed to me since.  I was actually quite surprised when I found myself wanting to make this! 

 

It makes use of frozen popcorn chicken, which I did not have.  I did have some leftover chicken strips however and so I heated them up and used them in the place of the popcorn chicken.  I cut them into bite sized pieces.

I also didn't have the soup required for the cheese sauce, but I substituted it with something which I think was even better.  (See below.)

This was a hearty and delicious casserole that would be great for two hearty eaters, or three smaller eaters.  Especially if you add a salad to enjoy on the side.  Eating a salad on the side might actually help you to feel a tiny bit more virtuous and make up for the cream in the sauce, lol. (Let's not go there!)

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CHICKEN PARMESAN MAC & CHEESE (small batch)

This is a bit of a cheat in that it uses a few store cupboard ingredients, but once in a while I don't see a problem with that!  Do YOU? We do what we can.

• 1/4 pound (4 ounces/113g) frozen popcorn chicken
• 1 1/3 cups (320ml) water
• 2/3 cup (160ml) heavy cream
• 6 ounces (170g) macaroni (scant 1 1/2 cups)
• 6 ounces (170g) processed cheese spread (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 TBS onion powder (not salt)
• 1/2 TBS garlic powder (not salt)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp coarse black pepper
• 1 1/3 cups (148g) grated Mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup (45g) grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup (123g) marinara sauce, or to taste

I will admit I toyed with using boxed macaroni and cheese, but that would have been going too far down the convenience rabbit hole, besides I have lots of pasta and stuff that needs using.

I used whipping cream/heavy cream. (35% fat)   The original recipe had used condensed cheddar cheese soup. I did not have any of that, but felt that cheese whiz cheese spread would be a great substitute, and it worked out beautifully. If you use the soup, you will need roughly 1/3 of the tin.  Using cheese whiz meant I did not have to open a tin of soup and then decide what I was going to do with the rest of it.

I was a bit worried at the amount of garlic powder and onion powder, but it worked fine.  Just make sure you use the powders and not the salts.

True disclosure here, I used a four cheese Italian blend which had Mozzarella, Emmenthal, Provolone and Parmesan cheese in it. It worked beautifully. 

I used a good jarred Marinara sauce. You can always freeze the bit that you don't need to use another time. It freezes very well.

 

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN PARMESAN MAC & CHEESE

This was really easy to make. What I loved about it was that there was no need to make a separate cheese sauce for the macaroni. It all cooks together in one pot, ready to spread out in the baking dish.

Cook your popcorn chicken according to the package directions. Make sure your oven is preheated to 400*F/200*C/gas mark 6. While the chicken is cooking make the macaroni and cheese.

(I had a quantity of leftover chicken fingers from the other day and so I just reheated them in the oven while I was preheating it and then cut them into thirds with a pair of kitchen scissors. If you don't have or don't like popcorn chicken you could use chicken fingers, either cut up or kept whole, or you could even use two breaded chicken breast fillets cooked according to the package directions and just keep them whole and proceed as per the recipe for topping, etc.)

 

Measure the water and cream into a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil and then stir in the macaroni, making sure the macaroni is completely submerged.

Cover and turn the heat down to medium low. Cook for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the macaroni is tender. Do not drain.

Stir in the cheese spread, garlic and onion powders, salt and black pepper. Stir in 1 cup (111g) of the Mozzarella cheese and all of the Parmesan cheese.

Butter a 9 by 4-inch baking dish. Spread the macaroni and cheese in the dish evenly. Place the cooked popcorn chicken evenly spaced on top.

Drizzle the marinara sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle with the remainder of the Mozzarella cheese.

Bake in the preheated oven, uncovered, for 13 to 15 minutes until the cheese has melted on top and is beginning to brown and everything is heated through.

Divide between two (three) heated dinner plates and enjoy!

 

This was relatively easy to make and was a great way to use up my leftover chicken strips. (I cut them into pieces and reheated in the oven until hot.)  The macaroni and cheese itself was fabulous.  It was rich and delicious, and I could see it being enjoyed all on its own.

I would make this again. I think my family would really enjoy this, especially my daughter and son-in-law!  A tossed salad goes very well on the side, and if you are a true carboholic you would probably enjoy some garlic bread.

   

If you are a fan of the pasta bake, you might also enjoy the following tasty options which are perfectly sized for the smaller family. You can of course double the recipes to feed more people.

DUMP AND BAKE MEATBALL CASSEROLE - No fuss, no muss deliciousness sized for two people, with a marinara sauce and pasta base, topped with delicious meatballs and ooey gooey cheese.  Simple and tasty!

EASY CHICKEN & BROCCOLI PASTA BAKE - Creamy, cozy and healthy, this delicious casserole makes a fabulous weeknight dinner.  This is a perfect casserole to help get some broccoli into your diet. Quick and easy to make as well.

MACARONI CHEESE & TOMATO BAKE FOR TWO - This one is from my own cookbook, The English Kitchen. What you have here is a base of pasta in a deliciously simple tomato sauce.  A rich and cheesy bechamel sauce gets slathered on top and then you crush some cracker crumbs over top of that. Small batched to feed two people, this is an old family favorite!

Yield: 2 -3 servings (depending on appetites)

Author: Marie Rayner

Chicken Parmesan Mac & Cheese (small batch)

Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 45 Min

This is a hearty and delicious pasta bake that boasts a rich macaroni and cheese base, topped with popcorn chicken, marinara sauce and more cheese!

Ingredients

• 1/4 pound (4 ounces/113g) frozen popcorn chicken
• 1 1/3 cups (320ml) water
• 2/3 cup (160ml) heavy cream
• 6 ounces (170g) macaroni (scant 1 1/2 cups)
• 6 ounces (170g) processed cheese spread (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 TBS onion powder (not salt)
• 1/2 TBS garlic powder (not salt)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp coarse black pepper
• 1 1/3 cups (148g) grated Mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup (45g) grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup (123g) marinara sauce, or to taste

Instructions

1. Cook your popcorn chicken according to the package directions. Make sure your oven is preheated to 400*F/200*C/gas mark 6. While the chicken is cooking make the macaroni and cheese.
2. Measure the water and cream into a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil and then stir in the macaroni, making sure the macaroni is completely submerged.
3. Cover and turn the heat down to medium low. Cook for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the macaroni is tender. Do not drain.
4. Stir in the cheese spread, garlic and onion powders, salt and black pepper. Stir in 1 cup (111g) of the Mozzarella cheese and all of the Parmesan cheese.
5. Butter a 9 by 4-inch baking dish. Spread the macaroni and cheese in the dish evenly. Place the cooked popcorn chicken evenly spaced on top.
6. Drizzle the marinara sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle with the remainder of the Mozzarella cheese.
7. Bake in the preheated oven, uncovered, for 13 to 15 minutes until the cheese has melted on top and is beginning to brown and everything is heated through.
8. Divide between two (three) heated dinner plates and enjoy!

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