mac and cheese

By jab120638

Ingredients

• 1 pound (16 oz) box of Safeway Kitchens Pasta Rotini (Elbow Macaroni, Penne and Mini Farfalle also work well)
• 3-4 cups grated cheddar cheese (you can use other semi-hard cheeses as well)
• 4 slices American cheese cut into pieces (you can find this in the Safeway Deli, as well as in the cheese section)
• 3 oz PHILADELPHIA Original Cream Cheese (not the spread, 3 oz is just shy of half an 8oz brick)
• 2 TBSP butter
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups half and half or milk (half and half will give a richer flavor)
• 1 tsp salt
• OPTIONAL MIX IN ITEMS
• A few drops of hot sauce
• A tablespoon Dijon mustard
• A teaspoon fresh black pepper

Details

Servings 8
Cooking time 15mins
Adapted from lovefromtheoven.com

Preparation

Step 1

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions.Drain pasta, and prior to placing pasta back into the pot, place butter, PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese and grated cheese into the pot. Pour drained pasta back into pot, onto ingredients. Add cut up slices of American Cheese, and approximately 1 cup of half and half or milk to the pot.

Return pot to stove and turn burner to low heat (using the same burner already used to cook the pasta works best as it will still be warm). Sprinkle in salt (and optional mix in items if using) and stir well. As cheeses start to melt, add an additional 1/2 cup of milk or half and half.

Continue stirring over low heat until all ingredients have melted and have combined with pasta. Add additional half and half or milk as needed to reach desired level of creaminess. Serve immediately and enjoy!