Fried Mac and Cheese Bites with Sweet Basil Marinara

So, let's get this week started on the right foot with these Fried Mac and Cheese Bites with Sweet Basil Marinara dipping sauce! They are essentially homemade mac & cheese, breaded, then fried and served with the most delicious sweet basil marinara sauce.

Looking for more delicious appetizers? Try my bacon wrapped jalapeño poppers, or my crispy bang bang shrimp!

I know right, ridiculous!

Essentially they are the epitome of comfort food and they are about to be your newest favourite appetizer!

Let's Make the Mac & Cheese Bites!

making the mac & cheese squares

To do this, in a large pot combine the elbow macaroni, chicken stock, and evaporated milk. 

Yep, you read that right, you are going to be cooking the elbow noodles in the chicken stock and evaporated milk! This allows the noodles to soak up a ton of extra flavour and makes the mac and cheese uber rich and creamy.

Stir to combine everything together and bring the noodles to a boil, cook them for 8-10 minutes or until the noodles are fully cooked, but still slightly chewy (this is called al dente). Remove the noodles from heat and let them sit for 5 minutes. 

DO NOT drain the noodles like you would normal noodles, instead what is left of the liquid will turn into the perfect cream sauce/base for the mac & cheese. 

After your noodles are cooked add the shredded cheddar, shredded mozzarella, paprika, black pepper, and salt into the pot and stir until all of the cheese is melted and fully combined. 

Line a 15x10 baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the macaroni onto the baking sheet in an even layer. Refrigerate until it is fully set, about 2 hours. 

To expedite the setting process of the macaroni and cheese, let it cool in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, and then transfer it to the freezer for an additional 30-45 minutes. 

Pro Tip- Crumple the parchment paper up BEFORE you put it onto the pan. Crumple it up and carefully unfold it, it will stay put on the pan and not curl up!

While the mac & cheese bites are cooling, this is the perfect time to make the Sweet Basil Marinara Sauce!

Sweet Basil Marinara Sauce

To make the marinara sauce we are going to use canned diced tomatoes instead of crushed tomatoes, and I will explain why below. 

The reason that I like to use canned diced tomatoes over pre-crushed tomatoes is that you can have more control over how "crushed" the tomatoes get. 

Using an immersion blender to blend the diced tomatoes allows you to keep some chunks of tomatoes in the can, instead of having a smooth pureed sauce, the sauce will have some bigger pieces of tomato which is perfect for this recipe!

So, for the canned diced tomatoes, drain off the excess water and use an immersion blender to slightly blend the tomatoes, leaving some small chunks of tomato behind. To do this, submerge the immersion blender in the tomatoes and give it 5 or 6 pulses. 

Then in a medium sized pan combine the tomatoes, brown sugar, extra virgin olive oil, basil, and salt.

Place over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring regularly. Lower heat to a simmer and let cook until the sauce has thickened, about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Remove the sweet basil marinara sauce from the heat and refrigerate until cold. 

Setting Up the Breading Station 

To set up the breading station, you will need 3 separate shallow bowls. 

In bowl number one, combine the flour and cornstarch and stir to combine. 

In bowl number two, combine the eggs and water, then whisk to combine. 

Finally in bowl number three, combine the panko breadcrumbs, garlic powder, paprika, and salt and stir to combine. 

Breading the Mac & Cheese Bites

After the mac and cheese bites have set up, place a large cutting board on top of the baking sheet, grip both sides of the cutting board and the baking sheet tightly and flip it upside down. 

Remove the baking sheet and carefully peel off the parchment paper. 

Cut the mac & cheese into 24 squares. 

Move over to the breading station and dip the mac and cheese bites into the flour and cornstarch mixture first, turning to fully coat.

Gently tap off any excess flour/cornstarch then dip the square into the egg mixture, also turning to fully coat it. 

Finish by placing the mac & cheese square in the panko mixture, turning to fully coat each square with the panko breadcrumbs. 

Place the breaded mac & cheese bites on a piece of parchment paper and repeat until all of the squares are breaded. 

The Final Step, Frying the Mac & Cheese Bites

In a large frying pan or deep skilled add 1 cup of vegetable oil, heat over medium heat until the vegetable oil is very hot. 

Carefully place the breaded mac and cheese bites into the oil and cook for 3-4 minutes per side or until they are golden brown. 

Take care to not crowd the pan, fry the bites in batches, adding more oil in between if necessary. 

When they are golden brown, transfer the mac and cheese bites to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. 

Serve immediately with a side of sweet basil marinara sauce.

And there we have it, just like that Day one is complete!

We hope you love this series as much as we do, and we will see you with appetizer #2 tomorrow morning!

If you love creamy mac and cheese recipes, you have to try my outstanding mac and cheese with Gouda cheese and my crispy cauliflower white cheddar mac and cheese!

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