These Mexican-inspired flavors into mac & cheese are sooo good. I made it wayyy back in 2011 but I thought since I love it so, it deserved a photo re-do. I use cheddar, corn, salsa, taco meat, and top it with tortilla chips. Sometimes I throw in tomatoes, green chilis, and black beans.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound ground beef, chicken, or turkey
4 tbs taco seasoning
1/2 pound elbow pasta
1 cup corn
8 oz shredded cheddar
3 tbs flour
3 tbs butter
1 1/2 cup milk
2 cups tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup salsa
1 cup tortilla chips, crumbled

Directions:

Bring plenty of salted water to boil for the pasta.
In a large pan, cook the ground meat until cooked through. Drain, and add taco seasoning, a splash of water, and reduce heat to low.
Add the pasta to the boiling water, and cook according to the package. Be careful not to overcook.
In a medium pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and stir as the roux becomes a paste. Cook for about 3 minutes until it changes from yellow to light tan.
Whisk in the milk and until smooth. Add in 3/4 of the cheese, stirring until smooth. Add the last 2 tbs of taco seasoning.
When the pasta is mostly cooked, add in the corn for the last 2 minutes of cooking.
Remove from the heat, and stir in the taco meat and tomatoes.

Preheat the oven to 375-degrees.
Drain the pasta and the corn. Then add to the cheese sauce mix.

Gently add the pasta in and mix. Then spread into a baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray, dotting with salsa and sprinkling in the last of the shredded cheese.

Top with crumbled tortilla chips.
Cover and bake 15 minutes.
Uncover, and bake another 10 minutes.

Serve with salsa and enjoy!

I really love the taco seasoning flavors and some of the taco-inspired-additions. The baking time gives it a chance to really come together, and is perfect timing to get everything else washed and away by the time it comes out. I don’t make it very spicy but you can amp it up a notch if you like!