Spicy Philly Cheesesteak Macaroni and Cheese

November 28, 2016

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Spicy Philly Cheesesteak Macaroni and Cheese is spicy, creamy, and hearty and makes the perfect winter dinner or tailgate food!

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving and had your fill of turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing! I don’t know about you, but I can only eat Thanksgiving leftovers for a day or two and then I am over it. Friday night I had already had enough and we had spaghetti and meat sauce! Much more my style than turkey! So when Sunday rolled around, this Spicy Philly Cheesesteak Macaroni and Cheese really hit the spot! When 1 o’clock rolled around, we switched off the Christmas movies and turned to football! Ryan and I each had a bowl (or two!) of this while we watched the game and it was the perfect football watching lunch!

Let me clear about one thing here, I love macaroni and cheese. And no, not the boxed kind, but the baked, cheesy, crumb topping kind. I never, ever had macaroni and cheese as a kid. My mom isn’t a fan so since she cooked all the dinners, we never had it! Actually, the first time I ever had homemade macaroni and cheese was in college.

My boyfriend (now husband!) would come to visit me every other weekend and I would make dinner for him on Fridays. He requested pork chops and macaroni and cheese one night. I thought sure, how hard could it be? I boiled some noodles and then poured milk and cheese into a pot and stirred it up and then baked it. It turned out fine, but I know now that I completely messed up.

I realize now that you need to make a bechamel sauce, melt some cheese in it off the heat, and then bake it. I have been working on perfecting my recipe ever since that college dinner. I think I have tried every recipe variation out there, and have finally settled on a standard recipe. I love to mix it up though and try different combinations. This Spicy Philly Cheesesteak Macaroni and Cheese definitely tops the list of favorites now!

I used El Yucateco® Red Chile Habanero sauce in this recipe and adds the perfect amount of rich flavor and heat! It doesn’t have as much vinegar as other hot sauces do, so you can actually taste the peppers! The small bottle is also portable and so easy to take with you on the go! It is tailgating season and spicy foods are definitely king during a tailgate. I love adding El Yucateco® to my burger meat mixture, putting a hearty dash into my chili, sprinkling some over some nachos, or putting a few dashes in a Bloody Mary! All delicious and spicy tailgate foods! The Red Chile Habanero sauce is really an all purpose sauce!

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This red habanero sauce work so well together with the creamy cheese sauce. The tang of the cheese with the flavor of the Red Chile Habanero mesh really well together. The Green Chile Habanero Sauce would be great in this macaroni and cheese as well, even though its a little spicier than the red.

I love El Yucateco® Chipotle sauce as well and use it often during the summer on the grill! My favorite Spicy Grilled Chicken Tostadas are so good marinated in that sauce! It is the perfect substitute for BBQ sauce and has such great smoky heat flavor! If you are tailgating, it is the perfect sauce to toss your wings into!

This macaroni and cheese tastes exactly like its sandwich counterpart, but creamier and spicier! The sauce has the prettiest slightly orange hue from the hot sauce. Mixed with the fresh taste of the onions and peppers and the meaty steak pieces, it is perfection.

And because I couldn’t leave well enough alone, I went and added a sprinkle of more cheese and fried onions on top! They added the perfect crunchy topping! I normally go with panko breadcrumbs, but this was a great change of pace.

If you can find it, use shaved steak for this recipe. I am able to find it at Walmart and it is the perfect meat to use for this dish, my Italian Philly Cheeseteak Sliders, fajitas, or any other sandwich recipe. It cooks up so quickly and is the perfect texture for mixing it into the macaroni and cheese.

After a quick 10 minute bake, this Spicy Philly Cheesesteak comes out of the oven warm and cheesy and full of flavor. The perfect comfort food for the winter! This would also make a delicious tailgating recipe! Steak and spicy are the perfect combo for football games! If you are hosting a crowd and don’t want to be scooping out bowls of mac and cheese, make this meal in small ramekins or in muffin tins! You then have individual dishes to pass out which is easier when entertaining!