Macaroni, Slightly Paula Deen Style

Do you remember a certain Savannah, Georgia trip? Well, if you missed out, it was a very LONG day that was supposed end in dinner at the Lady and Son's restaurant, but instead, ended in dinner with "Wanda" at the Cracker Barrel. A mistake that will never be forgotten.

With that in mind, I was watching the food network yesterday, trying to maintain my dignity as drool ran down my chin, when Mrs. Paula Deen made a macaroni and cheese in a crock pot.

In a crock pot?

Well, I had to see what that was about.

Of course, I never copy or repeat a recipe exactly, so my macaroni has been slightly modified from the original, to save calories. (She says with a giggle, laughing at the idea of a low calorie macaroni. Hahaha)

The first step was to heat the 2 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese (I used a vermont white chedder... my preference), with half a stick of butter. Well, I cut that down to a quarter stick and BAM, it's practically diet food!

You then transfer this mixture into the crock pot. Mixing in a 1/2 a cup of sour cream ( I used lite, since this is a low cal meal), 1 cup of milk (which I split, whipping cream and milk. I felt bad about all those calories I was taking out), then 1/2 tsp ground mustard, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper. Mix these ingredients together and add 1 bag of cooked elbow noodles.

When I tasted this, to ensure quality of course, the macaroni was sensational! Honestly the best I have ever had! However, whoever told Paula that mac and cheese could go into the crock pot should be fired from her staff immediately.

The first part of the process should begin 5 minutes prior to serving this delicious, creamy mac and cheese, and should NOT be cooked for any extended period. The flavor remains, but the creamy texture goes away. Which is what I suspected as I added the sour cream, but I did it anyways, trusting in Paula's decision.

If you're craving macaroni, I highly recommend Mrs. Paula Deens' recipe, but skip the extended cook time... sour cream and cheese don't deserve that kind of treatment. ;)