pantry meal week

You might want to make this for dinner tonight! Nothing says comfort food like Mac & Cheese right?!

I got the idea for this recipe from the label on a can of evaporated milk of all places! It's been another week of pantry meals since I was gone this weekend, hence, we have no groceries so I was on a mission to come up with a use for some pre-cooked shredded chicken that I had in the freezer and zucchini from our garden!

(Quick Tip: You can come up with some great ideas if you simply google your main ingredients - - i.e. chicken and zucchini recipes)

Thus follows the creation of Spicy Jack Mac & Cheese with Chicken & Zucchini. The original recipe was Spicy Jack Mac & Cheese with Broccoli. I'll give you my version!

Spicy Jack Mac & Cheese with Chicken & Zucchini

2 cups small whole wheat pasta (shell or maccaroni), uncooked

2 cups diced zucchini (more!)

1-2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

1 1/2-2 cups (8 oz) Pepperjack cheese, shredded

1 1/2-2 cups (8 oz) Cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 tsp. ground pepper

1-12 oz. can evaporated milk

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan, divided

2 T. panko bread crumbs

(sorry for the poor quality cell phone picture of my leftovers...you get the idea!)

Easy peasy.

Preheat oven to 350. Boil pasta. Add zucchini with 2-3 minutes left in boiling time. Drain. Mix in cheeses + 1/4 cup parmesan, pepper, and evaporated milk. Put in lightly greased 2 1/2 qt. casserole dish. Mix bread crumbs and remaining parmesan. Sprinkle on top. Bake for 20 minutes covered and 10 minutes uncovered.