Jean Neely: So now, it’s Macaroni and cheese with the smoky bacon and potato chips. So, go ahead and put my noodles in.

Pat Neely: I have got your water boiling.

Jean Neely: And I’ll get the milk to make the cheese sauce.

Pat Neely: We’ve got a pound of noodles. These noodles are little different and I could never get the name right.

Jean Neely: They’re called cavatappi. The little cork screws because it helps catch the cheese. We make the cheese sauce. So, we’re going to go ahead and add in our four cups of milk. We’re going to let that simmer for about 10 minutes and then we’ll finish up our cheese sauce. I need to get six tablespoons of butter so I’m going to go ahead and slice it out because that will make it cook a little faster. So, we’re going to go ahead and melt this butter to get the cheese sauce started. We’re going to add a half of cup of flour and we want this to almost cook to a little blonde color. So, I’m just going to stir it a little bit and help it out. You have this kind of turned blonde, that’s the color we want to achieve.

Pat Neely: While Jean is working on that sauce, I’m going to drain the noodles, grate three cups of cheddar cheese and a half of cup of parmesan. This is a great recipe because it’s got some of my favorite ingredients. I love cheddar cheese and also bacon because you know I’m—man so I got to have the support.

Jean Neely: Alright, if you can help me pour this milk.

Pat Neely: Yes ma’am, I got you honey.

Jean Neely: Nice and slow.

Pat Neely: Don’t want to get any hot milk for my hot mama.

Jean Neely: I kind of whisk this all together blend it, get all the lumps out. So, we need a quarter teaspoon of cayenne pepper so give that little kick that I love to do. One teaspoon for the ground mustard, you know Pat and I have cooked lots of macaroni and cheese recipes. Everybody always has a recipe for you. I got one, I got one. I have my mother-in-law gave me recipe. I have my mom gave me a recipe. I was like, something is missing. When we tried it with the chips and the bacon, it just click. It gave it the smokiness, the crunch. I finally know that it’s a great recipe.

This is about a quarter of a teaspoon of fresh nutmeg that would add a nice warm flavor to the cheese sauce. Thank you. And a little dash of Worcestershire or the black star so a little dash of that and you know, see how we like our spices, a little hot sauce. And a little hot sauce because my man like it hot. There might have been too much hot sauce but—with a little kick. So, we’re going to whisk it all together. That looks good. Bring over that cheddar big daddy. Look at that. And that look good?

Pat Neely: That’s going to be good. So, we just add this and you know what I really love honey?

Jean Neely: What do you really love honey?

Pat Neely: I love it when you do that little kick thing, can I just see it one time? Alright.

Jean Neely: I can do a full course if you let me get loose.

Pat Neely: You know, I know.

Jean Neely: Now, look at that. You can go ahead and put the noodles in the bowl and I’ll bring the sauce over.

Pat Neely: Okay—cute little cute little noodles. They’re cute little noodles.

Jean Neely: Okay. Look at that nice cheese sauce.

Pat Neely: Oh that’s good.

Jean Neely: Yeah.

Pat Neely: I can smell that nutmeg and that cayenne pepper is going to be so good. Let me get your spatula.

Jean Neely: Yeah and you come around this. I don’t want to waste any of this cheese sauce; the cheesier the better, the girls will love it.

Pat Neely: Yeah.

Jean Neely: See that red pepper in it?

Pat Neely: Yeah.

Jean Neely: It’s got a little hot sauce.

Pat Neely: Won’t you let daddy take it.

Jean Neely: You got it?

Pat Neely: Daddy got it. More sauce the better.

Jean Neely: The better.

Pat Neely: Because underneath and you are the what?

Jean Neely: The sauce.

Pat Neely: That’s really good.

Jean Neely: Good? I see how the cheese is keeping each other’s noodles. That’s why we need to have a topping.

Pat Neely: I have been good boy. I have been good. It pays to be good.

Jean Neely: Yeah.

Pat Neely: This is going to be great.

Jean Neely: Yes.

Pat Neely: This is great.

Jean Neely: Thank you. So now—

Pat Neely: I’m serious. I mean this is really, really good.

Jean Neely: Could I put my—

Pat Neely: Oh, you put your—in here. I would never be a bad boy—okay what are we doing?

Jean Neely: Okay. So now, to add a little crunch to our macaroni cheese, we’re going to crunch up those a cup of potato chips.

Pat Neely: These are potato chips.

Jean Neely: You notice when I kept that bacon earlier this morning from breakfast because I was going to use to put my macaroni and cheese.

Pat Neely: You want me to finish? I’ve got a bigger knife.

Jean Neely: You’ve got the big daddy knife.

Pat Neely: Yeah, daddy’s knife, daddy’s knife, daddy’s knife. Let me jump in here.

Jean Neely: Okay. So I can be sprinkling the chips on here because I’m like the spice flavor but now I’m the chip fairy.

Pat Neely: You’re the chip fairy, chip fairy, spice fairy and daddy’s fairy, yeah.

Jean Neely: So, we want to cover that, you see that? It’s like I have a little bite, you take, you have a little bite of crunch.

Pat Neely: So now—

Jean Neely: Right on top.

Pat Neely: And now we’re going to come with a little of—

Jean Neely: Just a little parmesan just to give it a little depth to it. So now, we’re going to put in the oven at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. We just want to let that cheese and bacon melt.

Pat Neely: This is going to be a wonderful dinner.

Jean Neely: Look at that. Thank you.

Pat Neely: To you sweetie.

Jean Neely: Thank you. Pat’s been a good boy.

Pat Neely: Did you know I’m very fortunate because I’ve got the one that I truly love.

Jean Neely: You taste the chips in it and the bacon?

Pat Neely: Right combination. I will always be a good boy.

Jean Neely: Promise?

Pat Neely: I promise.