Winstead Wandering

Prone to Wander

Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese

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If you aren’t using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

If you aren't using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

I remember the moment I knew I was in love with J. It was my freshman year in college, sometime in the fall after we’d talked on the phone every day during the summer and spent the first semester of school hanging out on campus. I remember texting him often during those months (from my camera-less flip phone because this was 2005), saying things like, “I really like you.” It hadn’t occurred to me yet that I more than liked him.

You might also like: Creamy Sausage Macaroni & Cheese

And then one day I headed to the mail room to check my tiny mailbox. I don’t even remember if I had mail that day, but I do know I was leaving the building because I was headed up the stairs that led back to the center of campus and toward my dorm. I had my phone out, texting J, and I tripped on the stairs. That part doesn’t have anything to do with my epiphany; I tripped at least once on every set of stairs on campus. But sometime during that walk from the mail room back to my dorm, I thought, “I think I love this guy.”

If you aren't using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

What does all this have to do with Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese? Not much, really, except I’m writing this on Valentine’s Day (busy few weeks + blog issues =  tight post turnaround) so I’m feeling a little mushy. Also, even though there are a ton of things J and I don’t have in common — he loves Top 40 music and I’m all about 90’s/early 00’s hip hop; he loves sci-fi, action, and comic book movies, while I want light and happy; he’s an incredibly picky eater, but I’m more adventurous — macaroni and cheese is something we agree on. We both love the stuff, including this super simple recipe.

You might also like: Five Cheese Macaroni & Cheese

If you’ve never made homemade macaroni and cheese, this recipe is the perfect place to start. It doesn’t require you to make any cheese sauces, and it certainly doesn’t call for any of that neon processed cheese junk (I love a good helping of Rotel Dip as much as the next Southerner, but please keep that fake stuff away from my mac ‘n’ cheese). The Instant Pot does all the noodle-boiling work, and they don’t even need to be drained. Just add the cheese and other ingredients to the cooked noodles, stir everything together, and everyone will think you spent a ton of time making a mouthwatering side dish.

If you aren't using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

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Creamy Sausage Macaroni and Cheese

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A grown-up take on a classic childhood dish, Creamy Sausage Macaroni and Cheese is as hearty and satisfying as it is easy and simple.

A grown-up take on a classic childhood dish, Creamy Sausage Macaroni and Cheese is as hearty and satisfying as it is easy and simple.

Surely I’m not the only person who grew up eating macaroni and cheese (blue box only, please) with sliced hot dogs mixed in. While I’d like to think my palate is slightly more refined than it was 20 or 25 years ago, child Abby pretty much considered that meal a delicacy. We spent a lot of time each summer with my dad’s mom, Granny, and any day we could convince her to make hot dogs and macaroni was a good day.

Truth be told, there’s probably enough nostalgia attached to that dish that I’d still gladly eat it. But since I can’t quite bring myself to do that, I’m settling for the next best thing: this Creamy Sausage Macaroni and Cheese. Really, though, nothing about this recipe is “settling.” You’ve got hearty chunks of sausage, which can be as mild or as spicy as you’d like. You’ve got the pasta of your choice (for these photos I used a partial box of mini farfalle and a partial box of rotini). You’ve got a creamy, gooey, melty cheese sauce that puts that neon powdered stuff to shame.

If that isn’t enough to convince you to give Creamy Sausage Macaroni and Cheese a try, consider that it comes together in just about 30 minutes and, if you opt for a no-boil pasta, you can make the entire recipe using just one pot. Sold yet? That’s what I thought.

A grown-up take on a classic childhood dish, Creamy Sausage Macaroni and Cheese is as hearty and satisfying as it is easy and simple.

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One-Pot Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Pasta

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Tired of plain old enchiladas? Got leftover sauce? One-Pot Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Pasta is a surefire way to break out of a rut and please a crowd.

Tired of plain old enchiladas? Got leftover sauce? One-Pot Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Pasta is a surefire way to break out of a rut and please a crowd.

I’m not gonna lie; my Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce is pretty stinking awesome. The Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas I make with the sauce are pretty great, too, but that doesn’t always mean I want to make enchiladas twice to make use of all the sauce. Instead, I like to mix things up by making this hearty-but-not-too-heavy One-Pot Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Pasta.

Did I mention it’s a one-pot meal? Yup. Y’all, that means even the pasta is cooked right in the skillet where you cooked the chicken. In just about a half hour you’ve got a crowd-pleasing meal and only one dirty pot.

Tired of plain old enchiladas? Got leftover sauce? One-Pot Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Pasta is a surefire way to break out of a rut and please a crowd.

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Pasta in Roasted Poblano Cheddar Cream Sauce

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Pasta in Roasted Poblano Cheddar Cream Sauce is easy and quick enough for a weeknight meal, but flavorful and fancy enough for guests.

Pasta in Roasted Poblano Cheddar Cream Sauce is easy and quick enough for a weeknight meal, but flavorful and fancy enough for guests.

I’m in the middle of a month-long gluten-free eating experiment. To be honest, I’m equal parts hoping it will resolve some health issues and also hoping it doesn’t so I don’t have to give up all things gluten-full. I don’t want to buy a lot of expensive (holy cow, gluten-free products cost a lot) gluten-free products, but I knew I needed to have a few things on hand for quick meals.

One of the things I bought was gluten-free pasta so, naturally, I had to make this Pasta in Roasted Poblano Cheddar Cream Sauce. The sauce is thickened with starchy pasta water instead of flour, so it doesn’t get thick and gloopy, rather it stays the perfect consistency to carry the roasted peppers and coat the pasta.

Pasta in Roasted Poblano Cheddar Cream Sauce is easy and quick enough for a weeknight meal, but flavorful and fancy enough for guests.

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Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs

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An easy, crowd-pleasing meal for any night of the week, baked spaghetti and meatballs is cooked all in one dish for big flavors and little cleanup.

An easy, crowd-pleasing meal for any night of the week, baked spaghetti and meatballs is cooked all in one dish for big flavors and little cleanup.

At this point, it might seem like all we eat is pasta dishes, Mexican food, and breakfast-for-dinner. That really isn’t too far off the mark if I’m being honest.

But we like what we like and, even though I do occasionally mix things up, I’m currently liking meals that are easy prep and easy cleanup. That’s exactly why, when I came across a spaghetti and meatballs recipe that was baked, didn’t require precooking of the pasta, and could be cooked all in one dish, I knew I had to make it.

This baked spaghetti and meatballs recipe sat on my to-make list for way too long, mainly because I had to wait to get my hands on lean ground beef. My tiny local grocery store doesn’t carry it, but I knew using any other kind would leave this dish greasy and unappealing. When I finally did buy lean ground beef, I wasted no time in whipping this up.

It was definitely a hit. I prepare meatless meals a few days a week, so anything with meat is an immediate favorite for J. It doesn’t hurt that these meatballs were tender, not dry (sorry, moist), and full of flavor. The pasta was perfectly cooked and coated in sauce. The whole thing was topped off with melted cheese- the kind that’s just starting to turn golden. Mmm.

The recipe was so fast to put together. Like, the whole thing was ready to be baked in the time it took the oven to preheat. The bake time itself is slightly longer than most of my easy weeknight meals, but I don’t mind that when the time is mostly hands-off. In fact, the baking time would be the perfect window to whip up a tasty vegetable side dish or a few slices of garlic bread.

The recipe makes enough to feed three to four people, depending on appetites and side dishes.

An easy, crowd-pleasing meal for any night of the week, baked spaghetti and meatballs is cooked all in one dish for big flavors and little cleanup.

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Pasta Salad with Sweet Tea Vinaigrette

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This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and The Coca-Cola Company. All opinions are mine alone. #SummerTastes #CollectiveBias

All your favorite summer flavors come together in one easy, hearty dish: pasta salad with sweet tea vinaigrette.

All your favorite summer flavors come together in one easy, hearty dish: pasta salad with sweet tea vinaigrette.

Pasta salad is one of my favorite summertime dishes. I love me some carbs, but I also love making those carbs guilt-free by tossing them with plenty of fresh vegetables and a light vinaigrette dressing. I love to have a batch of pasta salad in the fridge to eat on each day, but I also love to bring it to cookouts and get-togethers.

All your favorite summer flavors come together in one easy, hearty dish: pasta salad with sweet tea vinaigrette.

It’s a fairly crowd-pleasing recipe, and it can be made using any produce you want. I grabbed the veggies pictured when I bought the rest of the ingredients at Walmart; you can buy whatever sounds good to you.

All your favorite summer flavors come together in one easy, hearty dish: pasta salad with sweet tea vinaigrette.

I love sweet tea about as much as I love pasta salad. As a Southerner, I’m practically legally required to love the stuff, but I assure you it isn’t that hard of a task. What’s not to love? That’s why I considered it pretty ingenious to combine the two to create a pasta salad with sweet tea vinaigrette.

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Sausage and Tortellini

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Meet your family’s new favorite easy weeknight meal: this sausage and tortellini isn’t just mouthwatering, it’s also a super easy one-pot meal.

Meet your family's new favorite easy weeknight meal: this sausage and tortellini isn't just mouthwatering, it's also a super easy one-pot meal.

Does your family have a meal that’s always available as a backup? A recipe that you make sure to keep all the ingredients on hand for? If you’re a fan of easy weeknight meals, you’ll want to add this one to your arsenal.

If you open our refrigerator and don’t find a package of tortellini and a hunk of sausage, it’s probably because I made this meal in the last few days. There are several reasons why we eat this sausage and tortellini a couple times a month, with the main reason being that it’s just so good.

Beyond the fact that we love the hearty sausage and the rich tortellini, I also like that this meal is quick. It comes together quickly, in about 20 minutes. It’s made all in one pot and the pasta isn’t boiled separately, it’s just tossed in with the other ingredients and simmered there.

A supper that’s quick to prepare, only requires one pot, and brings together smoky sausage, garlic, and cheese-filled tortellini? I’m not sure what else you could ask for.

Meet your family's new favorite easy weeknight meal: this sausage and tortellini isn't just mouthwatering, it's also a super easy one-pot meal.

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homemade five cheese macaroni and cheese

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5 different cheeses are melted together in a rich, creamy sauce. The dish is baked and sprinkled with more cheese, giving you a flavor-packed homemade comfort food.

5 different cheeses are melted together in a rich, creamy sauce. The dish is baked and sprinkled with more cheese, giving you a flavor-packed comfort food.

This macaroni and cheese is the extra guest at nearly every Winstead family gathering. Not even the extra guest so much as the guest of honor. It’s requested by most of us as menu item for our birthday dinners, and it’s the perfect complement to my mother-in-law’s homemade chicken nuggets.

I’m not sure where she originally found it, but I am so glad she did.

This recipe uses no fewer than five varieties of cheese. They each pull their weight in a unique and necessary way, from the soft muenster to the sharp cheddar to the creamy Velveeta. Baked together, the cheeses from a sauce that’s thin enough to coat the noodles but thick enough to remind you that you are most definitely not eating blue box.

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baked spaghetti

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baked spaghetti is a quick, versatile, crowd-pleasing meal | winstead wandering

This baked spaghetti is my default the-labor-intensive-meal-I-had-planned-is-so-not-happening-tonight meal. It can be thrown together in just a few minutes more than the time it takes to cook the pasta, and it’s made with ingredients we almost always have on hand.

Don’t let the recipe’s simplicity fool you, though. This spaghetti is cheesy and gooey and saucy and just about everything you could want in a pasta dish. Plus, the way it bakes with the cheese and the sauce holding everything together makes it much easier to eat than a traditional spaghetti.

I love that this recipe is completely adaptable. You can use any type of noodles and cheese you have on hand, and you can totally toss in a handful of your favorite fresh or frozen veggies. Even my picky eater husband devours this dish and asks for seconds.What more can you want?

baked spaghetti is a quick, versatile, crowd-pleasing meal | winstead wandering

Baked Spaghetti

1 lb. whole grain spaghetti
1 1/2 c. spaghetti sauce
2 c. cheese, divided (I usually use half cheddar and half mozzarella)
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp parsley flakes
1/4 tsp salt
pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)

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