Invisible Food!

Sean and I have a running joke about "invisible food". This pertains to my ability to conjure a meal out of seemingly nothing, with an empty fridge and a grocery list a mile long. I thought it would be fun to post these "invisible meals" here as they occur. I'd love to hear of your own invisible food!

Today's invisible food is a variation on a favorite comfort food, macaroni & cheese. Sean has renamed Sunday "Baconday", and has written it into the bylaws of our marriage that Sunday MUST involve bacon. Because I didn't make my usual big Baconday breakfast this morning, I made up for it at lunch. Tonight we'll have leftover pasta with a big salad & steamed veggies.

Pasta shells with cheese & bacon

1/2 lb. bacon, chopped into 1" pieces (smaller if you prefer)
1 lb. pasta shells (or any pasta you have on hand)
3 oz. cream cheese, cut into pieces
1 tbsp butter
1/4 - 1/2 cup milk
~1 Cup shredded cheese (I used Monterey Jack & Cheddar to make it toddler-friendly, but anything you have on hand will work)

Saute bacon until crispy, reserve 2 Tbsp bacon fat and drain off the rest of the fat. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted to water to a boil, cook pasta according to directions. Drain water from pasta, return cooked pasta to pot. Add bacon fat, butter, and cream cheese, stir until cream cheese begins to melt. Stir in 1/4 cup milk and shredded cheese. Stir over low heat until all of the cheese melts, adding more milk as necessary until sauce is at desired consistency. Stir in bacon and salt/pepper to taste.

Voila! Not gourmet, but edible. Sidenote: this would be even better with snipped chives. You could also begin with a basic bechamel sauce if you don't have much cheese on hand. Stir bechamel and whatever cheese you happen to have into pasta after draining and proceed.