White Mac & White Cheese With/Without Mushrooms

Submitted by Montana Heart Song

"This is very simple--flavored with chicken or vegetable base and using milk or soy milk, cream cheese and mozzarella cheese. You may also use other veggies when cooking the macaroni in addition to the listed veggies in the recipe--minced carrots, minced green peppers. This is a time saver and I use the drained water for a soup base later."

 

• Ready In: 50mins
• Ingredients: 15
• Serves: 6-8

ingredients

• 2 cups dry elbow macaroni
• 1 -2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (optional) or 1 -2 canned mushroom (optional)
• 1 cup sliced diced white onion
• 1⁄2 cup margarine, and
• 1 teaspoon margarine
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons sysco chicken base or 1 1/2 teaspoons vegetable stock base
• 3⁄4 cup milk or 3/4 cup soymilk
• 1 teaspoon seasoning salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons water
• 2 1⁄2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 slices white bread, toasted, broken in little cubes (optional)
• Pam cooking spray

directions

1. In two quarts of boiling water, add the dry macaroni. Also add the sliced mushrooms and diced onion. Cook for 8-10 minutes.
2. Drain. Save the water if you wish for a vegetable base for soup.
3. In large bowl, add cream cheese, chicken or vegetable base and 1 tsp margarine. Mix well.
4. Then add milk and seasoning salt and pepper.
5. Add cooked macaroni and onion and mushrooms.
6. Toss until mixed.
7. Mix flour and water. Add to macaroni.
8. Add 1 1/2 cup cheese. Mix.
9. Spray Pam in 8x10 or 9x13 glass pan. Preheat oven 350°.
10. Melt half cup margarine. Add bread cubes.
11. Pour macaroni cheese mixture in glass pan.
12. Sprinkle the balance of mozzarella cheese on top.
13. Add buttered bread cubes.
14. Note: If you want to have meat in the dish,cook 8 slices of bacon,drained and cut in small pieces and add to macaroni before the buttered bread cubes.
15. Bake 35 minutes. If refrigerated, bake about 10 minutes more.
16. It is a very good dish to serve the following day. The flavors seem to intensify.