Buffalo chicken macaroni and cheese

My readers know I love mac n' cheese. Even as I've been trying to eat less gluten and grains, macaroni and cheese remains one of my biggest weaknesses. I love to make it so many ways. 

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This mac n' cheese is something I've been wanting to make for a while now. We made some blue cheese burgers recently and had leftover blue cheese, so I knew the time had come to make a Buffalo chicken mac n' cheese. Now in Buffalo, we don't really call things "Buffalo" -- they aren't "Buffalo" wings, they're just chicken wings. But, for the sake of this blog and all my non-western NY readers, I'm calling this "Buffalo" (but don't you dare put any ranch dressing near it - blue cheese, please). 

Aside from the blue cheese, you must have a proper hot sauce, and some celery. For reasons that are pretty obvious from this blog, we don't eat chicken wings very often...maybe once a year we will go out for some (we do live very close to Duffs after all).

I really loved this dish. My husband was skeptical, but he really enjoyed it as well. You have to get a good flavor balance in your sauce and that is why I recommend adding your blue cheese and hot sauce slowly and tasting along the way to ensure you don't overpower this dish with either of those strong flavors. 

Serve this up while the weather is still chilly - it's perfect for a game day or a lazy Saturday night with a couple of beers.

Buffalo chicken macaroni and cheese
1 lb. rotini or other short cut pasta
2 tablespoons butter, plus more for greasing
1 celery stalk, minced and leaves reserved
3 scallions, finely sliced, greens and whites separated
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups milk (I used whole)
1-1/2 cups chicken broth
1-1/2 cups sharp white cheddar cheese
about 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
about 1/3 cup hot sauce, preferably Franks
1 lb cooked chicken breasts, cubed
sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until just under al dente. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grease a baking dish lightly with butter. 

While the pasta cooks, warm the 2 tablespoons of butter in a pot over medium heat. When melted, add the celery and scallion whites. Stir and cook for about two minutes. Add the flour. Stir well and cook for about 2-3 minutes.

Whisk in the milk and chicken broth. Continue to cook, whisking often, until the sauce is smooth and begins to thicken. Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the cheddar. Begin to whisk in the blue cheese a couple tablespoons at a time. Taste in between each addition and continue to add more until you are happy with the flavor. Then begin to add the hot sauce slowly while tasting until your reach your desired amount. Stir in the chicken and season with salt and pepper. 

When the pasta is cooked, drain it and return it to the cooking pot. Gently stir in the cheese mixture until well combined. Pour into the baking dish. Top with a little more blue cheese, if desired. Bake until bubbly, about 20 minutes.

Top with scallion greens and minced celery leaves, if desired. Serve with extra hot sauce.