Refrigerator Mac 'N Cheese - Keep Albany Boring

Hey, KC here with the backstory on this makeshift meal: I’m wicked broke at the moment and in-between pay periods at my job, but have budgeted out just enough to have a solid night tomorrow at Outpost1 and pay my utilities bill on time early next week. Cheers to being a sort-of responsible human. Unfortunately, my recent joke of being on the “pasta-and-freeze-pop diet” has become a reality for the next couple of days. However, I am blessed that I am friends with KAB writer and foodie Lis George.

The process leading up to this meal (as pictured above) is both common and simple. You open the fridge door, you look at the contents of the inside of the fridge, you close the fridge door without taking anything out. You then repeat the same process in the pantry cabinet. No progress, nothing cool is in there. Then you return to the fridge and although the contents have not changed, you decide you might as well get creative. You don’t want to spend any money. You want to utilize whatever you have. You ask yourself “how did I get here?”

This is what Lis George calls making a “glorified pasta side.” Found ingredients and improvised instructions after the jump.

Here’s what we worked with:

3 Kraft Singles (gross)

1/4 of a Block of Cracker Barrell Sharp White Cheddar (better)

4 tbsp Cream Cheese

1/2 Cup of Mexican Blend Shredded Cheese

1 Box of Ronzoni Garden Delight Pasta

Whatever Amount of Butter You Can Find

Garlic Salt

Pepper

1/4 Cup of Random Bread Crumbs Maybe Leftover From Last Thanksgiving

Instructions:
1. Boil pasta to your preference. Put 1/2 of cooked pasta into a casserole dish.
2. Cover with half the amount of different cheeses.
3. Spread 1 tbsp of butter and 2 tbsp of cream cheese on pasta.
4. Cover with a good amount of garlic salt, pepper and bread crumbs.
5. Repeat steps 2-4.
6. Put in oven, preheated to 350 degrees, for 15-20 minutes.
7. EAT ‘N ENJOY
7.5. We put Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce on top. I recommend this.
8. Maybe eat leftovers for tomorrow and stretch it as far as you can.
9. Or don’t.