Good morning, Dubbers! Improvement week has come and gone, and the Thundering Herd of Marshall are on the docket. I went to college about 30 minutes from Marshall, and have always had a soft spot for the green and white when they aren’t playing the Buckeyes. Hopefully, the men of the scarlet and gray ignore the temptation of Tudor’s NIL money and simply take care of business on Saturday. And while the Bucks take care of business on the field, you can enjoy the party that comes from this week’s recipe:

Deep Fried Mac and Cheese Bites

These golden-brown delights are perfect for tailgating, as they give you plenty of mac and cheese goodness without having to worry about a fork. They do take a little bit of time to prepare, so don’t wait until the last minute to start making them. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb box of elbow macaroni
• 4 Tbsp butter
• ½ cup of milk
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 cups Italian cheese blend
• 4 cups of oil for frying (or an air fryer)
• 2 ½ cups of bread crumbs (plain or Italian)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp white sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• Pinch of cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 4 large eggs
• 4 Tbsp milk
• 1 cup flour

Directions

1. Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in macaroni. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally until macaroni is cooked through but still firm to the bite (appx. 7 minutes). Drain.
2. Stir in butter. 
3. Add ½ cup milk (you might need a little more if your mixture is becoming too thick).
4. Stir in the 2 cups of cheddar cheese and the 2 cups of Italian blend cheese. Continue to stir until the cheese is melted. 
5. Place the mac and cheese into a container and refrigerate until firm (about 4 hours).
6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove the mac and cheese mixture from the refrigerator and scoop into little balls, and place them on the baking sheet. Smaller is better – use a cookie scoop or tablespoon rather than an ice cream scoop. Bigger bites run the risk of having a cold center after frying. Freeze the mac and cheese balls for 2 hours.
7. Heat oil in a deep fryer to 350 degrees F or set your air fryer to 375 degrees F.
8. Whisk bread crumbs with paprika, chili powder, black pepper, sugar, salt, and cayenne in a bowl.
9. Beat 4 eggs in a bowl and add 4 Tbsp of milk.
10. Add 1 cup of flour to a 3rd bowl.
11. Remove the mac and cheese balls from the freezer. Coat them with flour, then cover in the egg mixture. Finally, dredge them in the breading.
12. Fry the breaded mac and cheese balls in small batches until golden brown (3-5 minutes in oil, 6-8 minutes in air fryer).
13. Remove and serve hot.

Pro Tips

• Experiment with your cheeses. In addition to the cheddar and Italian blends, I added the Great Value (Walmart) reaper blend, as well as a reaper pimento cheese from a local market that added some great flavor and a bit of heat.
• Add bacon to the mac and cheese, because bacon. Jalapenos are another great add-in.
• Place unused mac and cheese balls back in the freezer while deep frying. Leaving them out for an extended amount of time will cause them to start falling apart.
• Serve with marinara or spicy ranch (or both)