Mac and Cheese and Meatballs

This one’s an entire comfort-food casserole in one pot! The dish is a pretty standard mac and cheese, combined with meatballs— a fusion of two favorite comfort foods in every serving. You can use frozen beef or pork mini meatballs (so long as they are 1/2–1 ounce each). However, we found that turkey meatballs have a milder flavor, so the dish tasted more like cheese than meat— that is, more the way a mac and cheese should taste.

Cuisine

Modern

Course

Dinner, Kids, Lunch

Difficulty

Easy

Duration

30-60 min

Cooking Technique

Max Pressure Cook, Multicooker, Sauté

Keywords

30-60 min, 4 servings, Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough, butter, chicken or vegetable broth, contributed, cook 28 min, dinner, easy, elbow macaroni, finely grated parmigiano-reggiano, garlic powder, heavy cream, kids, lunch, max pressure cook, mini or bite-sized frozen turkey meatballs, modern, multicooker, onion powder, prep 5 min, sauté, shredded cheddar, stemmed fresh thyme leaves, table salt

Prep Time

5 min

Cook Time

28 min

Servings

4 servings

Ingredients

4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 lb mini or bite-sized frozen turkey meatballs
4 tbsp butter
2 tsp stemmed fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp table salt
16 ounce elbow macaroni
12 ounces shredded cheddar
1 ounce finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/2 cup heavy cream

Instructions

Press the button SAUTÉ. Set it for HIGH, MORE, or CUSTOM 400°F and set the timer for 10 minutes.
Mix the broth, meatballs, butter, thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt in an Instant Pot. Heat until many wisps of steam rise from the liquid. Turn off the SAUTÉ function. Stir in the macaroni and lock the lid onto the pot.
Option 1 Max Pressure Cooker
Press Pressure cook on Max pressure for 5 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off.
Option 2 All Pressure Cookers
Press Meat/Stew or Pressure cook (Manual) on High pressure for 6 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off. The valve must be closed.
Use the quick-release method to bring the pot’s pressure back tonormal. Unlatch the lid and open the cooker.
Press the button SAUTÉ. Set it for HIGH, MORE, or CUSTOM 400°F and set the timer for 5 minutes.
Stir in the shredded cheese, grated Parmesan, and cream until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Turn off the SAUTÉ function; set the lid askew over the pot and let sit for a couple of minutes. Serve warm.

Notes

Beyond
• For more heft, stir in up to 2 cups packed baby spinach or kale at the same time as the cheese and cream.
• Garnish the servings with minced chives, stemmed and minced fresh parsley leaves, ground black pepper, grated nutmeg, and/or red pepper flakes.

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