This side dish from Chef Marti Lieberman tastes like it should be a main course thanks to all the best melty CA cheeses, like mozzarella and cheddar. Perfect to enjoy at home.
To make the Cheese Sauce, combine heavy cream, milk, grated Romano cheese, ranch dressing and pepper in large stock pot. Heat on medium high and stir until well combined and mixture comes to a slow simmer. Add grated provolone and mozzarella cheeses and stir until incorporated. Repeat with Cheddar. This process will take time and cheese will melt once it reaches a high level of heat. Turn off heat and add grated American cheese. Stir until sauce is silky smooth. Add cooked pasta into sauce until desired consistency is reached with pasta well coated with sauce. Chill until ready to prepare Snax.
To prepare Panko Crunch, pour 1/4 cup olive oil into a sauté pan. Stir in salt and pepper. Mix in panko and stir on low heat until golden brown. Stir in shaved garlic. Remove crumbs from pan and mix in grated Romano cheese.
To prepare Snax, cut wonton wrappers into 3-inch squares. Form 1 1/2-ounce balls of chilled Mac mixture. Place each ball in center of wonton square. Wet edges and pinch together forming a pocket. Fill medium pot with oil and heat to 350°F. Cook Snax until golden brown then drain. Garnish with Panko Crunch before serving. Alternately Snax may be cooked in an air fryer at 360°F for 4 minutes.
Recipe developed by Marti Lieberman, Mac Mart, Philadelphia, Pa.
Finalist, Innovate-T0-Go Category, CA Dairy 2 Go Competition, 2021
