Southwest Chicken Pasta

This is probably my favorite mac 'n cheese!

- 1 lb penne or corkscrew pasta

- 2 tbsp vegetable oil

- 4 6oz boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-size pieces

- 1 tbsp ground cumin

- 1 tbsp ground coriander

- 2 tbsp chili powder

- salt and pepper

- 1 large yellow onion, chopped

- 3 garlic cloves, chopped

- 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

- 2 tbsp unsalted butter

- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour

- 2 cups milk

- 3/4 lb sharp yellow Cheddar cheese, shredded (about 2 1/2 cups)

- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

- 1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Salt the boiling water and cook teh pasta until slightly undercooked.

While the water is coming up to a boil, preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat with the vegetable oil.  Season the chicken with cumin, coriander, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Add the seasoned chicken to the hot skillet and cook until lightly brown, about 4-5 minutes.  Add the onions, garlic, and jalapenos and continue to cook for 5 minutes.  While the chicken is cooking with the onions, make the cheddar sauce.

In a medium sauce pot, melt the butter and add the flour to it.  Cook for 1 to 2 minutes over moderate heat, then whisk in the milk.  When the milk comes to a bubble, stir in the cheese, cilantro, and parsley with a wooden spoon.  Season with a little salt and pepper and remove the cheese sauce from the heat.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it back into the large pot, add the contents of the chicken skillet and all of the Cheddar sauce, and stir to combine.  Transfer to a baking dish and place the broiler to lightly brown.

This is so yummy!!

I had some manchego cheese leftover from a different dish the other day.  I used the manchego cheese and added a chile in adobo sauce.  This became a wonderful adult mac 'n cheese!  As is, the recipe is southwest flavored, but no real "spicy" to it.  A great family mac 'n cheese!

Random trivia:  this is the first Rachael Ray recipe I remember making after Will and I got married, about 3 months in.  I tried to cook like her with all my pots going at the same time.  I accidentally turned on the wrong burner.  I scorched one of our new pots so badly I had to send it back to the company to see if they could fix it.  When they couldn't, they sent me a new pot!