Chipotle Macaroni and Cheese

On Thursday Chrissie and I cooked up some mac n cheese with a little twist.  The recipe came from Cooking Light (click to see recipe, nutrition info, etc...) but I don't really think I would classify it as "light".  Regardless it is REALLY good so I thought I would share the recipe.  

A few notes:

*if you want it a little spicier, leave some of the seeds in the chipotle pepper, otherwise take them ALL out!

*I use fat free ingredients instead of the "low fat" and it turns out the same

*easiest if you do all of your measuring ahead of time (cheese, chopping, etc...) as it all happens really fast

Ingredients

• 1  (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
• 1  tablespoon  butter
• 1/2  cup  finely chopped onion
• 1/2  cup  finely chopped green bell pepper
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 2  tablespoons  all-purpose flour
• 1  (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles, undrained
• 4  cups  hot cooked elbow macaroni (about 2 cups uncooked)
• 2  cups  (8 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
• 1  cup  1% low-fat cottage cheese
• 1  cup  2% reduced-fat milk
• 1/4  cup  (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1  large egg, lightly beaten
• Cooking spray
• 3  tablespoons  dry breadcrumbs

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

Remove 1 teaspoon adobo sauce from can; set aside. Remove 2 chipotle chiles from can; finely chop to measure 1 tablespoon. Reserve remaining chiles and adobo sauce for another use.

Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chopped chiles, onion, bell pepper, and garlic; cook 4 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring frequently. Sprinkle with flour; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium; add tomatoes. Cook 3 minutes or until thickened. Add reserved 1 teaspoon adobo sauce, pasta, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, milk, Parmesan, and egg; stir to combine. Spoon pasta mixture into a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray; top with breadcrumbs. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly.