Jalapeño Popper Mac and Cheese

Ingredients

• 3-4 cups elbow macaroni noodles
• 6 Slices of bacon
• 3 cups whole milk
• 2 medium jalapeños diced (I used very very mild ones and de-seeded them)
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 small onion diced
• 4 cups white cheddar cheese, or white American Cheese (shredded)
• 1/2 block cream cheese
• ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup – 1 cup panko bread crumbs

Directions

• Cook pasta according to package directions. Then drain but do not rinse. Set pasta aside.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cook bacon until golden brown, remove and chop. Do not discard bacon grease.
• Sautee onion, garlic and jalapeno in the bacon grease for just a few minutes.
• Add milk, cream cheese, and 3 cups cheddar cheese. When mixture is all melted add mustard, cayenne, nutmeg and salt and pepper.
• Mix macaroni with jalapeno cheddar cheese sauce most of the sliced bacon bits, reserving a handful of bacon for garnish.
• Pour into greased or buttered baking dish
• Top with 1 cup cheddar cheese, bread crumbs, and the left over bacon.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheesy topping is browned and cheese sauce is bubbling up around the macaroni.
• Remove and enjoy!