Ham Macaroni & Cheese

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5 from 2 votes

Creamy and rich ~ Ham Macaroni and Cheese ~ perfect comfort food!

Prep Time30

Cook Time30

Total Time1

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: casserole, cheese, ham, macaroni

Servings: servings

Calories: 424kcal

Author: Tricia

Ingredients

6 ounces pasta, like macaroni or cellentani
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 12 ounce can evaporated milk
3 tablespoons skim milk, 2% or regular milk
1 large egg
dash of cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon fresh black ground pepper
4 ounces American Cheese slices, 6 wrapped slices, torn into small pieces
4 ounces smoked Gouda shredded
4 ounces sharp Cheddar Cheese shredded
1 cup ham diced into 1/2" cubes (plus a dozen extra pieces for garnish if desired)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly spray a 1 ½ to 2 quart baking dish with vegetable cooking spray and set aside.
Cook the pasta al dente, per package instructions. Drain well.
Return the cooked pasta to the pot and add the butter. Toss to coat until all butter is melted.
In a small bowl with a spout, whisk together the evaporated milk, regular milk, egg, cayenne and black pepper.
In a separate small bowl or ziplock bag, combine the American, Gouda and Cheddar cheese.
Spread ⅓ of the pasta in the bottom of the prepared casserole dish. Top with ½ of the ham. Sprinkle ⅓ of the cheese mixture on top of the ham and pasta.
Repeat again starting with the cooked, buttered pasta, the remaining ham, and ⅓ of the shredded cheese. Finally, spread the remaining pasta and cheese on top.
Pour the egg and milk mixture over the top of the casserole. Top with a few extra pieces of ham if desired.
Bake until the casserole is set and lightly browned on top, about 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow the casserole to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Base recipe inspired by a recipe in the January 2017 issue of RealSimple Magazine
Cover and refrigerate leftovers.
Since the casserole includes ham, no additional salt is needed when cooking.
To freeze the casserole, bake then cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap and foil and freeze until needed. Defrost completely in the refrigerator, remove the wrapping and rewrap lightly with foil. Bake (covered with foil) at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until warmed through.
Recipe may be doubled and cooked in a 13x9-inch casserole dish
Make sure you are using unsweetened evaporated milk, not sweetened condensed milk

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. When multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.

Nutrition