Green Well Mac-n-Cheese
If you know, you know! And I know that the Green Well’s mac-n-cheese is iconic. It’s everything you want in a macaroni and cheese and then some. You feel like your eating healthy but also cheating on your diet at the same time, because of all the veggies. The ingredients are slightly unconventional but once you take one bite you will understand why this dish is iconic.
Why I love this mac-n-cheese
My favorite restaurant is the Green Well. If you are from Grand Rapids and you haven’t been there, I’m sorry! Here’s the scoop I got my slimy hands on the recipe for my absolute favorite thing on the menu at the Green Well. It’s their Mac-n-Cheese, and this isn’t any ordinary mac-n-cheese or moe-Key-cheese as one little girl I know used to say. My kids balked a little bit, however once they gave it a try there were some serious ooohs and aahhhs around the table. It does exceed the 5 ingredient limit, as far as easy goes, but once you do the prep it’s a throw it together meal. Seriously. You can make this recipe your own if you want, use leftovers take out or put in what you like. So feel free to mess with it. The Green Well roasts their own chicken, beautifully I might add, but I just bought mine at the store already roasted. Easy! Here’s how you do it!
NOTE: Sadly since I first published this recipe the Green Well has closed. This is a restaurant that was supposed to stay open for ever, but it didn’t, and I am immensely sad about it, and feeling a bit guilty I didn’t frequent there more often. However, in the last couple years it was around they did a full rehaul of the menu removing ALL the best things. They also gave the place a weird redo making it look like a diner, which was not. Any way I could bitch endlessly about the redo of this restaurant and the closing of it, but I will not seal my lips and say, I am so thankful I can share this recipe with you! Go forth and enjoy!
Gather these ingredients
How to make Green Well Mac-n-Cheese
There are a lot of ingredients to to make it easier on yourself, the best thing to do before you start cooking is to get all the ingredients measured and ready to go. This is called mise en place, and it’s actually the best way to be successful when cooking anything. Be prepared, by prepping ahead, it will save you time in the long run. Have a glass of wine, or ice water whatever your thing is and get your mise en place!
Cook the noodles al dente, reserve some of the cooking water. Rinse noodles and set aside.
Add portobello mushrooms and cherry tomatoes to a hot non-stick skillet and saute until tomatoes are starting to pop and mushrooms are browning.
Add shredded chicken, bacon, ham, and minced garlic to skillet, combine. Cook this for a minute to allow garlic to get fragrant and start to cook.
Add cheese and thyme to the pan.
Stir to combine.
Add heavy whipping cream and stir carefully to combine, trying not to disturb tomatoes too much.
Add the reserved pasta water to the sauce to loosen it up before adding the snap peas.
Add snap peas and allow to cook for 1 minute. Then fold in noodles. The pan will be really full at this point to take care.
After noodles have been added and all the ingredients are cooled through, add fresh basil to finish off the dish. Keep in mind the snap peas are not suppose to be soft, they should retain a snap to them, cook them enough just to get them warmed through.
Let’s connect!
So there you have it! I would love to hear from you. Had you ever eaten this dish at the Green Well in Grand Rapids? Let me know how it compares. It’s decadent and delicious, so completely unexpected, not something you would eat every week, but maybe on a Sunday afternoon when you have time to dance around in the kitchen and enjoy something as scrumptious as The Green Well Mac-n-Cheese.
Please leave me a comment. Give this recipe a star rating in the recipe card below. Tag Eat2gather when you make this and share it on your socials! Enjoy. From my table to yours with so much love, Sheila
Green Well Mac-n-Cheese
Equipment
- 1 large skillet
- 1 pot for cooking pasta
Ingredients
- 1 cup diced ham
- 4 slices bacon cooked and cut into pieces or crumbled
- 2 cups roast chicken, shredded I use a store bought roasting chicken.
- 2 cups sliced, mini portobello mushrooms whatever you have on hand will work
- 2 cups snow peas
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 tbsp minced garlic approximately 2 cloves
- 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar
- 1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 pound cavatappi ridged pasta pasta with ridges hold on to the cheese sauce
- 1/4 cup fresh basil chiffonaded
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- boil noodles, per box directions (al dente=not too done) and drain, reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water
- fry bacon, while that’s frying dice your ham and pull your chicken add chicken, bacon and ham into large skillet oven medium heat, to heat through.
- Add mushrooms about 3 minutes until mushrooms start to brown add tomatoes, peas, thyme and garlic cook for a minute until garlic warms up and tomatoes start to pop.
- Add all the cheese to meat and vegetables, pour in heavy cream allow about 30 second for cheese to start to melt then with a big rubber spatula, fold together, being careful not to break up tomatoes.
- add in cooked noodles and basil gently stir to coat, if it seems to thick or gloppy add in pasta water a little at a time until you get the perfect consistency.
- taste and add salt if needed, I find I do not need to add salt because of the salty bacon and cheeses, however I do add a few cracks of fresh ground pepper.
I made it! Yummmy!! I did have to omit the swiss and double the Jack cheese cuz my kids say that swiss smells like butt and refuse to eat it, but it was still yum.
I doubled the recipe and it was ALL gone that night!! (we had some help from Jod and Nate)SANKS for the recipe!!!
Oh wow, I got chill bumps from reading this post. I am so trying this for next Sunday supper. My daughter and I will devour this as pasta and fresh veggies are our vise. The hubby will turn up his nose, but oh well….more for us! Thanks for posting this recipe. I am no where close to Grand Rapids, so my loss, till now.
Yummylicious…I'll get the recipe and try to cook that food….The foods makes me hungry right now….
restaurant wells me
If you stop by Demetria, pick me up first!
I wish you would post what you where going to cook 1st…then I conveniently stop over while you where cooking for a taste (or perhaps a plate). Man, that one looks good. You should post this on Tasty Kitchen Blog. I know, I know, I am giving you more to do….
What is next? Blog readers want to know….
Okay- that looks really yummy!!!
That looks fabulous and a big thanks for all your colorful photos in your earlier post! The photo of you at the top is how I am feeling! I need to go out and buy some flowers.
I think I'll try this one too! It sounds yummy!! Thanks Sheila!
This sounds fantastic – definately on the got to try list!