Mexican Pasta Casserole

Sometimes there is time to idle in the grocery store and dream of meals to fix, and other times, time is so pressed that I have to just come up with something quick and easy to feed my family.

Yesterday was one of those night. My days was so crazy and so busy in fact that I did not have time to go the grocery store. Luckily there was a few things in my fridge…

Ingredients for 6-8: 1 lb of ground Italian sausage ( mild or hot), 1 can of tomato and green chili pepper, 3 cups of milk, 3 tbsp of flour, 2 tbsp of butter, 2 cups of Mexican cheese blend, 1 cup of pepper jack cheese, 3 cups of dry pasta ( macaroni, penne…)

1. In a large frying pan, warm up 1 tbsp of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the ground sausage and cook. Stir as the sausage cooks. Set aside.

2. Cook the pasta according to directions in boiling water or cook it the fast way using your demarle cookware: in a large round mold, empty 3 cups of dry pasta, 3 cups of water, and ½ tsp of salt. Cover the large round mild with the octagonal silpat and cook in the microwave for 10-12 minutes until they are still a bit al dente. Drain the pasta and set aside.

3. Meanwhile prepare the sauce for the pasta. In a small saucepan, melt 2 tbsp of butter, add 3 tbsp of flour and mix well to make a roux. When the flour is turning brown, add the warm milk and stir at medium temperature until it comes to boil. Cook for another 5 minutes until it thickens. Add the can of tomato ( drained of all its juices), 1 cup of shredded Mexican cheese, 1 cup of Pepper Jack, ¼ tsp of salt, 1/8 tsp of pepper and mix well.

Empty the cook pasta back into the round mold, add the cooked sausage and mix well so that the sausage is well dispersed throughout the dish. Empty the sauce into the pasta and stir to make sure that the cream is well incorporated. Top the dish with the remainder 1 cup of cheese and cook in the warm oven of 375 for 30 minutes.