Following my last post about our camping weekend, I thought it would be fun to share the chilli mac & cheese recipe we made one evening. When camping, using the bare minimum dishes is key so this one pot meal was perfect. I stumbled upon a recipe on pinterest and was inspired to prepare my own version for camping
Matt introduced me to the combination of chilli and macaroni and cheese last summer. It was – to him – a staple during camping (and or snowboarding apparently). I was a little less optimistic about mixing 2 beloved dishes, being the purest that I am. But after testing it out last year, I was sold on the idea. I LOVE macaroni and cheese. It is my ultimate comfort food and guilty pleasure. I could eat it night and day. But I make an effort to avoid pasta and bread most days so it is now just an occasional indulgence. By adding organic black beans and a few vegetables to the mix, I feel much better about having seconds. I feel like I’m getting nourishment from this meal instead of just a stomach full of pasta, butter and cheese. I highly recommend making this dish while camping – cooler weather definitely helps the appetite as well. There is just something special about cooking on an open flame, it makes everything taste better. If you are making this in your kitchen, I suggest using a smoked cheddar to give it a little bit of that smokey taste from the fire.
A little note about this recipe; the proportions of each ingredient do not need to be exact – this isn’t baking – have fun improvising a little. You can easily add fun things like sweet potatoes, okra and other vegetables. Otherwise, meat can definitely be added if you swing that way. The jalapeño is roasted so it won’t give that much of a kick. Feel free to leave it out to make it more kid friendly or add a few more to kick up the spice. To roast the pepper, we skewed it with a stick – same as you would do with your marshmallows.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 1 jalapeño
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup of dried black beans, prepared according to directions*
- 1 cup macaroni pasta
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup cheese, plus more for topping, shredded
Instructions
- in a large pot, heat coconut oil over a medium heat. add onion and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile roast your jalapeno over the open flame (this can also be done in the broiler at home) until the skin starts to bubble. Remove from heat, half, remove seeds and dice into small pieces.
- Once the onion is soft, add the red pepper, zucchini, jalapeño and garlic. sauté until softened, about 5-10 minutes.
- add chilli powder, cumin, salt, tomatoes, beans. stir to combine. Cook for another 10 minutes, to break down the tomatoes.
- Add the water and bring to a boil. Add the noodles and cook till noodles are al dente.
- Stir in grated cheese and cook till cheese is blended and melted.
- Serve with more shredded cheese if desired.
I’m gonna have to make this now!