Hola!

I survived brunch with my older brother, two nieces, and a nephew yesterday. Was really hoping to also see my other nephew, my sister, and her husband, but alas, that was not meant to be.

Not that I thought I wouldn’t survive it. It’s just that sometimes I get stressed when hosting a brunch, not knowing if guests are just being too polite to ask for something, so I end up asking if they need or want anything as they are sitting down to eat, but then I wonder that even if they don’t say anything, whether I’m missing something. But yesterday it was actually a very low key and laid back brunch. I made two kinds of frittata, hash brown potatoes, a whole bunch of bacon, and mimosas! Maybe the mimosas helped! I also think having more physical room in the new place makes it less stressful.

Anyways, this wasn’t part of the brunch. I made mac and cheese a few days ago, and was bummed because the cheese sauce separated! I should’ve used good ol’ velveeta. Instead, I used some iffy kind of cheese that had herbs in it. Maybe it wasn’t real cheese. It was literally a hot mess! So after I ate some of it, I put most of it in the fridge where it has been sitting for a few days. I knew that having it sit in the fridge, it would just sit there until it eventually would make it’s way to the compost bin. Use it or lose it.

And just how does one repurpose leftover (or failed) mac and cheese? By adding some bacon, more cheese, egg, flour, baking powder, and milk, then putting it in muffin molds–that’s how!

These are now more portable, and easier to reheat. They may still contain the separated cheese sauce, but it’s hidden, plus the bacon really helps. Bacon always does!

Bacon Cheddar Mac And Cheese Muffins

ingredients

1 pound of leftover mac and cheese

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 pinches of salt

3/4 cup whole milk

2 eggs

4 ounces cooked bacon, crumbled or chopped into small cubes

4 ounces cheddar cheese

method

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove leftover mac and cheese from refrigerator and set on counter to warm up to room temperature. If it’s really cold, use the microwave for several seconds at a time to get it to room temperature. Set aside.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl and stir with a whisk to mix. In another bowl, whisk the eggs and add milk and continue to whisk thoroughly until milk and eggs are sufficiently mixed. Pour into flour mixture and whisk until all the flour mixture is wet and the whole thing resembles pancake batter.

Add the cheddar cheese and bacon to the mix and stir with a spoon or rubber spatula.

Finally, add the leftover mac and cheese and stir until all is combined and thoroughly mixed. Divide into 12 greased and floured muffin tins and bake for 20-25 minutes in a 350 degree F. oven until some browning occurs and muffins don’t look wet on surfaces.

I hope you enjoy! They reminded me of cornbread, so maybe next time, I might try using a blend of cornmeal and regular flour in the batter, then serve ’em up with some sour cream and guacamole!