I’ve been quite obsessed with caprese things lately… I think it’s because tomatoes are their absolute best in summer! Today I decided to throw some of that lovely caprese flavor into a classic summer side dish and this caprese mac & cheese was born! Simple ingredients like fun short cut noddles (I’m obsessed with ditalini noodles now), cream cheese, shredded italian cheese, cherry tomatoes, and pesto make this delicious dish come together super easily!
Caprese mac & cheese recipe:
caprese mac & cheese
Ingredients
- 16 oz of your favorite short cut pasta I used ditalini
- 8 oz cream cheese cubed and brought to room temp
- 1 cups milk
- 3 cups shredded italian cheese divided
- 1/3 cup basil pesto
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 tsp mustard powder
- healthy pinch salt and pepper
- 2 pints cherry tomatoes halved
- freshly minced basil for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Coat a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray.
- Cook pasta according to package instructions then drain, reserving ½ cup pasta water.
- With drained pasta back in its cooking pot, stir in the reserved pasta water, cream cheese, 2 cups shredded italian cheese, pesto, minced garlic, mustard powder, salt, and pepper. Mix until cheese is completely melted and a creamy cheesy sauce forms. Finally, stir in the halved cherry tomatoes until well combined.
- Transfer pasta mixture to the prepared baking dish then with remaining 1 cup shredded italian cheese. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until bubbly and slightly browned in spots. Top with freshly minced basil and enjoy!
If you try this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment or tag a photo #appetitesanonymous on instagram!! I’d love to see your caprese mac & cheese in action. Peace, friends!
xx ab
p.s. more pasta recipes here!