Leftover Makeover: Mac & Cheese

Happy Friday!  Living in a house of two sometimes we end up with leftovers, I mean it happens to everyone right?!  There's some foods that are better the next day (chili, soups, sauces, etc.) others not so much.  As a guilty pleasure every once in awhile I buy Velveeta shells and cheese to make for lunch.  It's yummy that day but as leftover its mostly repulsive (strong wording?  sorry about it).  So I decided to give it a little makeover so it would be just as enjoyable the second time around!

I had seen a recipes for stovetop mac and cheese on different blogs and Pinterest and they looked delicious!  However I didn't really want to put as much effort into it (making the sauce from scratch, etc).  So I took the leftover Velveeta and changed its life.

Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese
(This made a pretty big serving that I didn't end up finishing, I'd split it in two next time)

Ingredients:

- leftover mac & cheese, about two servings worth/half the box

- cooked chicken, sliced (this was leftover too)

- about 1 Tbsp. buffalo wing sauce (to taste)

- 1 Tbsp. blue cheese crumbles plus some for garnish

- 2 to 4 Tbsp. milk

- 2 Tbsp. shredded cheddar

Instructions:

- In a microwave safe dish, put leftover mac plus 1 to 2 Tbsp. milk, cover and zap for about 1 minute.

- In a separate microwave safe dish add chicken and some buffalo sauce to coat it, heat until heated through.

- Once the mac starts to heat up and the milk loosens it up, add cheddar and another 1 to 2 Tbsp. milk, cover and heat again for 30 seconds to a 1 minute until cheddar is melted and milk is absorbed.

- Add chicken and stir.  Sprinkle in blue cheese, cover and zap until just barely melted (30 seconds or so).  Use your judgement on if there should be more milk added or not, its up to you.

- Drizzle buffalo sauce on top and top with blue cheese crumbles if desired.  

- Enjoy!

You could also chop up some green onions to put on top but I didn't have them on hand at the time.  This was really yummy and I couldn't even tell it was leftover!  Super creamy with some spice and tang from the buffalo sauce and blue cheese.  Plus it had some protein to it with the chicken.  Definitely a good lunch but I was ready for a nap afterwards!  I think it'd be perfect in a smaller portion with a side salad.

This weekend is another "free" weekend for us so we are hoping to enjoy what's left of the summer sun!  Up next I've got two Local Foodie Moments to share!

Cheers!

Steph

Local Foodie Moment: Dirty Frank's Hot Dog Palace

Happy Friday everyone!  After an interesting car problem saga yesterday (four hours of mini meltdowns, two tow trucks sent my way and partridge in a pear tree and I came to realize I was using Chris' car key in my car, insert slap forehead moment here)  I think its safe to say this week has been a doozy so why not make it better with another LFM?!

My friend Kourtney and I were headed downtown for a concert (Brett Eldredge, who is kinda great...look him up, just do it!)  and wanted to grab drinks and dinner before.  Downtown isn't always our destination for hang outs so we asked Siri for some restaurant ideas.  She gave us 18 ideas.  Having to pair those down while driving was a smidge tricky but we landed on Dirty Frank's Hot Dog Palace.  Kourt had been there, I had heard of it but had never been.  At the thought of trying a "new to me" local spot plus their specializing in hot dogs I was totally giddy!  Once summer rolls around I'm a BIG hot dog fan, slightly picky (if its charred too much I don't eat it, and I'm a little brand loyal) but big fan nonetheless.

It took me close to forever to decide on a hot dog, there are so many combinations and everything sounded so good!  They even have vegetarian and vegan choices!  I finally landed on the Zippity Zam which is a hot dog with roasted red peppers and Sriacha cream cheese.  Sounds totally weird, but it was totally delicious!  I got the mac and cheese as a side which was no exception (since this was a wedding diet splurge meal I thought go big or go home when it comes to sides, my abstaining from such goodies made this choice well worth it).

Zippity Zam!

Kourtney got The Doginator, a bacon wrapped hot dog topped with beef brisket, BBQ sauce, cheddar & onion rings with tater tots for a side.

The Doginator!

For cocktails I got the Joe Asbury (or something, I can't remember entirely) and Kourt had the Ride the Lightening.  Mine was a spiked sweet tea lemonade that was nice and refreshing after a warm day working at the Memorial Tournament.  Kourtney's was a kicked up version of lemonade, I snagged a sip and it was almost like lemon lime gatorade, very yummy!

It's a smaller place but the atmosphere makes it really cool, there is all kinds of paraphernalia on the walls from baseball player caricatures to rock and roll bands.  We sat at the bar and the bartender was really helpful and very patient with my indecisiveness.  The food came out fast but I suppose that's the advantage to the type of fair they make.  We were both pleased with our selections and everything was very tastey!  The hot dog had a good snap to it (HD aficionados you know what I'm talking about, that  delicious pop of the casing being cooked just right), the bun was nicely steamed and the toppings were the right proportions.

They have different flavor infused liquors that I'll have to go back to try, like their peanut infused vodka!  Dirty Frank's is actually owned by the same restaurant group (Columbus Food League) as Betty's, a restaurant I shared with you not too long ago!  Kourtney and I will actually be going to another one of CFL's restaurants tonight with Emily before we see Wicked.  Review of the Jury Room to come!



Have a great weekend!

Cheers!
Steph