Mom’s Baked Tomato & Cheese Macaroni Recipe

"This is not your everyday mac & cheese. It always tasted best when Dad would stop in Pinconning MI on his way home from deer hunting each year to pick up a huge round of Pinconning cheese. Mom had 5 hungry kids sitting at the table waiting for this to come out of the oven!"

Original is 8 servings

Metric US

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Ingredients

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1 pound dry macaroni (I use Mueller's Ready-Cuts)
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 tablespoons butter
1 can (14 1/2 ounce) stewed tomatoes

3 cups cheese
1/4 cup water
Salt and pepper to taste

Nutritional

Serving Size: 1 (170.5 g)
Calories 356.1
Total Fat - 11.5 g
Saturated Fat - 6.9 g
Cholesterol - 31.4 mg
Sodium - 340.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate - 46.4 g
Dietary Fiber - 5.5 g
Sugars - 2 g
Protein - 20.4 g
Calcium - 414.5 mg
Iron - 2.3 mg
Vitamin C - 7.7 mg
Thiamin - 0.3 mg

Step by Step Method

Step 1

Note 1: If you can’t find Ready-Cuts, use a small penne pasta or mostaccioli. Elbows don’t have enough substance for this recipe.

Step 2

Note 2: You may use stewed or diced tomatoes.

Step 3

Note 3: I use a combination of Pinconning, Colby, and mild Cheddar cheese. You may use your favorite(s).

Step 4

Boil macaroni in salted water, 3 minutes less than package directions. Drain. It will finish cooking in the oven.

Step 5

Sauté onion in butter until soft and translucent. Add the can of tomatoes to the onions and let simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.

Step 6

Slice cheese into small chunks and set aside.

Step 7

Preheat oven to 350°.

Step 8

Spray a 9X14” glass pan with non-stick cooking spray. Layer half the tomatoes and cheese in the pan. On top of this, layer 1/2 of the cooked, drained macaroni, then the remaining tomatoes, then the remaining macaroni, and top with the remaining cheese.