I was looking for a quick and comforting meal for this busy time of year, and creamy mac and cheese with store-bought cooked chicken was the perfect answer. Once the elbow macaroni is boiled, the rest of the ingredients come together in minutes.
Helpful Hints
- Any onion can be used in place of red onion.
- Any short cut pasta can be used
- Look for cooked or rotisserie chicken breast in the meat department.
Countdown
- Place water for macaroni on to boil.
- Assemble ingredients.
- Boil macaroni.
- Make cheese sauce.
- Add macaroni to sauce.
To buy: 1 container elbow macaroni, 1 container no-salt-added chicken broth, 1 bag shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, 1 carton nonfat ricotta cheese, 1 small piece Parmesan cheese, 8 ounces cooked chicken breast, 1 bottle smoked paprika, 1 red onion, 1 bag washed, ready-to-eat Romain lettuce. 1 bottle reduced fat salad dressing.
Chicken Mac and Cheese
Serves 2- 1 cup elbow macaroni
- 1 cup no-salt-add chicken broth
- 1/2 cup diced red onion,
- 3/4 cup shredded reduced fat sharp Cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup nonfat ricotta cheese
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 8 ounces cooked chicken breast cut into small cubes, (about 1 1/2-cups)
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Lettuce and Tomato Salad
Serves 2- 2 cups washed, ready-to-eat Romaine lettuce cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 ripe medium tomato, washed and cut into eighths
- 2 tablespoons reduced fat salad dressing
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Per serving: 35 calories (32 percent from fat), 1.3 g fat (0.1 g saturated, 0.4 g monounsaturated), 1 mg cholesterol, 1.4 g protein, 5.7 g carbohydrates, 2.1 g fiber, 13 mg sodium.
