This Short Rib Mac and Cheese is fast, easy, and so good.
Okay, you guys know that I like to write posts that solve very dire and important problems like:
I have a sad brown banana rotting on my counter. (Solution: Make Small-batch Banana Muffins )
Or I have too much boring vanilla ice cream. (Solution: Make Oreo Popsicles )
Today’s problem to solve: I have leftover short ribs but not enough for a meal .
The solution: Make Short Rib Mac and Cheese.
That’s right, shred that bit of meat and pile it on top of some creamy, cheesy pasta. It’s gonna be SO GOOD.
And just a heads up, this recipe is NOT going to tell you how to make short ribs (if you want that, I wrote 1700 words on how to make short ribs last week go give it a try!).
This recipe’s strictly for the day after you’ve made short ribs, when you’re trying to stretch those leftovers to make one more meal.
Short Rib Mac and Cheese to the rescue. It’s going to be fast, it’s going to be easy, and not to overhype things or anything, but it’s going to be a cheesy, meaty miracle.
Short Rib Mac and Cheese Recipe Notes
- I used white cheddar and gruyere in this recipe because it sounded good, but replacing those cheeses with regular cheddar works just fine.
- This recipe also works great with leftover pot roast, Carnitas , and Country-style Ribs .
Ingredients
- ▢ 1/2 cup ( 2.5oz ) uncooked macaroni *
- ▢ Shredded meat from leftover short ribs
- ▢ 1 tablespoon ( 14g ) salted butter
- ▢ 1 tablespoon ( 8g ) all-purpose flour
- ▢ 1/2 cup milk any percentage
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 1oz ) shredded sharp white cheddar*
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 1oz ) shredded gruyere cheese
- ▢ Pinch of cayenne optional
- ▢ Pinch of nutmeg optional
- ▢ Salt and pepper
Instructions
- In a small pot of generously salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- While your pasta cooks, reheat leftover short rib meat in the microwave. Set aside.
- After warming up the short rib meat, in a small pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until flour is lightly golden, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Slowly whisk in milk, beating out any lumps as they form. Cook, whisking continuously for 2 to 5 minutes, until mixture becomes thick and bubbly.
- Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Add cayenne and nutmeg if desired and plenty of salt and pepper to taste.
- Stir cooked and drained pasta into the cheese sauce and transfer to a bowl. Add shredded short rib meat over the top. Enjoy!
Notes
The perfect ratio for sweet and spicy cinnamon sugar.
Hey, friends, I have a quick and simple, sweet and spicy recipe for you today: Cinnamon Sugar.
Whether you’re looking to make up a big batch to keep in your spice drawer (would recommend!) or need just enough to sprinkle over your cereal, this recipe has you covered, and it’ s a handy little no-recipe recipe to have in your back pocket.
The Best Cinnamon Sugar Ratio
The perfect cinnamon to sugar ratio is 1:4. With this ratio, you get cinnamon sugar with the ideal level of spiciness that’s going to have a distinct cinnamon flavor but not overwhelm whatever you’re using it on/in.
Depending on how much cinnamon sugar you want to make, that looks like:
1/4 cup cinnamon to 1 cup sugar 1 tablespoon cinnamon to 1/4 cup sugar 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon to 1 tablespoon sugar
Storing Cinnamon Sugar
Cinnamon sugar stored in a cool, dry place will keep practically indefinitely. A mason jar or a recycled spice shaker both work well for storing your cinnamon sugar.
Uses for Cinnamon Sugar
Once you have cinnamon sugar in your spice drawer, you’ll find tons of ways to use it. Some of my favorites include:
- On cereal or oatmeal
- Rolling Snickerdoodles
- Sprinkled over cinnamon toast , waffles , or pancakes
- Sprinkled over the top of banana muffins
Ingredients
A little over 1 cup cinnamon sugar
- ▢ 1 cup ( 200g ) granulated sugar
- ▢ 1/4 cup ground cinnamon
1/4 cup
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 50g ) granulated sugar
- ▢ 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon
- ▢ 1 tablespoon ( 12g ) granulated sugar
- ▢ 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together sugar and ground cinnamon. Store in a cool, dry place.
If you like strawberries and you like good things, you’ll love this Small-batch Strawberry Frosting. It is sweet, strawberry perfection.
It’s been a while since I posted a small-batch frosting post, but I have a shiny new one for you this week, Small-batch Strawberry Frosting.
If you like strawberries and you like good things, you’ll love this frosting, because it is sweet, strawberry perfection. It’s dreamy on pretty much anything but especially on Vanilla Cupcakes , Small-batch Sugar Cookies , and Small-batch Brownies .
Best of all, this is a completely from-scratch strawberry buttercream frosting that doesn’t use strawberry extract or freeze-dried strawberries, just five ingredients: strawberries, sugar, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla.
And it is incredibly easy to make.
How to Make Strawberry Frosting with Fresh Strawberries
Like my Vanilla Frosting and most of the other small-batch frostings on the site, this is an American buttercream, which means it’s made with butter and powdered sugar for a very rich and sweet frosting.
To get a strong strawberry flavor without using extracts or ground freeze-dried strawberries, you start with a strawberry puree (just strawberries blended until smooth), which is then reduced on the stove so you get concentrated strawberry flavor without too much liquid that will make a runny frosting.
That cools to room temperature, and then you whip the puree with softened butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla.
You end up with a pretty pink frosting that is rich, creamy, and full of strawberry flavor.
A Note on Blenders
If you have one, I recommend using an immersion blender with a chopper attachment to puree the strawberries for this recipe, because some blenders will have trouble processing the small amount of strawberries needed for a small batch of frosting.
If your blender/food processor is struggling, you can add a couple more strawberries until there is enough volume for the machine to process. Once the strawberries are pureed, measure out the amount needed for the recipe, and you can use the leftover puree in lemonade or discard.
Strawberry Frosting Recipe Notes
- This recipe makes about 3/4 to 1 cup of frosting, enough to pipe on 4-6 cupcakes or spread with a knife on about 8 cookies or lightly frost the top of a 6-inch round cake.
- To make strawberry cream cheese frosting, replace 1 ounce of the butter (2 tablespoons) with 1 ounce of softened cream cheese.
- Looking for more strawberry recipes? Try Lemon Cookies With Strawberry Frosting , Strawberry Sauce , Strawberry Shortcake Sundaes , and Strawberry Milk .
Ingredients
- ▢ 4 medium strawberries hulled, plus more if needed*
- ▢ 1 teaspoon ( 4g ) granulated sugar
- ▢ 4 tablespoons ( 2oz ) unsalted* butter softened
- ▢ 1 cup ( 120g ) powdered sugar sifted
- ▢ 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ▢ Pinch salt
Instructions
- Puree strawberries in a blender or food processor or using the chopper attachment of an immersion blender. Measure out 1/4 cup of pureed strawberries and add to a small pot. Discard the rest.
- Add granulated sugar to the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until reduced to 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool on the counter until completely cool to the touch, stirring occasionally to speed up the process.
- In a medium bowl, beat softened butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of completely cooled puree, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat for 30 seconds.
- Add 2 more teaspoons of the puree, one at a time, beating well after each. After the final teaspoon, continue to beat until the frosting is light and fluffy. Discard remaining cooked puree.*
- Use strawberry frosting over cookies, cupcakes, or brownies, and enjoy! Frosting will be softer than regular buttercream, but will firm up in the refrigerator.
Notes
Short Rib Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup ( 2.5oz ) uncooked macaroni *
- Shredded meat from leftover short ribs
- 1 tablespoon ( 14g ) salted butter
- 1 tablespoon ( 8g ) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup milk any percentage
- 1/4 cup ( 1oz ) shredded sharp white cheddar*
- 1/4 cup ( 1oz ) shredded gruyere cheese
- Pinch of cayenne optional
- Pinch of nutmeg optional
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- In a small pot of generously salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- While your pasta cooks, reheat leftover short rib meat in the microwave. Set aside.
- After warming up the short rib meat, in a small pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until flour is lightly golden, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Slowly whisk in milk, beating out any lumps as they form. Cook, whisking continuously for 2 to 5 minutes, until mixture becomes thick and bubbly.
- Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Add cayenne and nutmeg if desired and plenty of salt and pepper to taste.
- Stir cooked and drained pasta into the cheese sauce and transfer to a bowl. Add shredded short rib meat over the top. Enjoy!
