Chicken and Slab Bacon Macaroni and Cheese

 

Talk about comfort food!  This macaroni and cheese is will have you going back for seconds.  Another great recipe when you're having dinner guests as you can make the entire recipe ahead of time and wait to bake  until you’re like to serve it.

• 1 1/2 lbs macaroni such as elbows 
• 2 sticks butter  
• 1 1/2 lbs american cheese, cubed 
• 16 ozs gruyere cheese, shredded 
• salt and pepper to taste
• garlic powder
• onion powder 
• 1 large chicken breasts cooked and roughly chopped 
• 1/2 lb slab bacon, cooked until crispy and cut into cubes 
• 1 c frozen peas 
• 2 c milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cook the macaroni according to package directions, drain and set aside.

Grease a 13" X 9" baking dish with butter, place a third of the macaroni in the dish, place pats of butter over macaroni. Sprinkle a third of the american cheese over macaroni, then a third of the monterey jack cheese.  Sprinkle some salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder over cheeses.  

Mix together the chicken, bacon and peas and sprinkle a third on next.

Repeat the process two more times and pour milk along the edge at the middle point to reach the bottom - not over macaroni.

Bake in the oven uncovered for twenty-five minutes and bubbly around the edges.

Remove from the oven and serve.