Chicken Cordon Bleu Mac and Cheese incorporates all of your favorite flavors including chicken and ham in a creamy Dijon Swiss cheese sauce.
Turning some of your favorite recipes into mac and cheese lets you enjoy all of the flavors you love in one dish!
Not only is this Chicken Cordon Bleu Mac and Cheese a great use for leftovers, its super creamy, flavorful and makes a fantastic weeknight meal.
I mean who doesn't love a good mac and cheese? This recipe is so easy to make, serves 4 people and can be ready in about 40 minutes. It even tastes great reheated so make extra!
Suggested Equipment
- Large Pot (or pasta pot)
- Colander
- Medium Saucepan
- Whisk
- 2-Quart Baking Dish
- Sheet Pan (I like to bake my mac and cheese on a sheet pan to catch any cheesy drippings!)
Ingredients Needed
To make this Chicken Cordon Bleu Mac and Cheese you'll need the following ingredients:
Macaroni Pasta: Traditional mac and cheese uses macaroni, but you can use any small pasta like shells, ditalini or gemelli.
Pre-Cooked Chicken: You can use any pre-cooked chicken whether it's leftover roasted, grilled, baked or even store bought Rotisserie chicken.
Ham: If you have leftover baked ham or ham steak, you can use that or use any deli cut ham.
Butter
All Purpose Flour
Half & Half: If you like your mac and cheese extra creamy, you can also use heavy cream.
Dijon Mustard
Chives: Dried or freshly chopped are fine.
Swiss Cheese
Panko Breadcrumbs: These breadcrumbs give this recipe a nice, crunchy topping.
Melted Butter
Parsley
How do you make Chicken Cordon Bleu Mac and Cheese?
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil with some salt over high heat.
Add the macaroni and cook until the pasta is a little undercooked (al dente); approximately 7-8 minutes. Drain the water from the pasta and place back into the pot.
While the pasta is cooking, you can make the cheese sauce. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat; then add the flour to form a roux.
Next add the half & half, mustard, chives and Swiss cheese. Whisk together until the cheese has melted and the cheese sauce has thickened.
Remove from heat; then add the diced chicken and ham. Mix well; then pour the cheese sauce over the pasta and toss to coat.
In a small bowl combine the panko breadcrumbs and melted butter. Place the macaroni into a 2-quart baking dish; then top with the breadcrumbs.
Place the baking dish on a sheet pan, sprinkle with parsley and bake for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is hot and bubbly and the breadcrumbs are lightly browned.
Make Ahead
Mac and cheese is a tough one to make too far ahead because the cheese sauce usually soaks up into the pasta once cooked.
You can prepare the recipe except for the topping; then cover and refrigerate over night until you're ready to bake.
When ready to bake take it out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before; then add a bit more half and half, milk or heavy cream to the top. Add the topping; then bake until hot and bubbly.
Reheating
To reheat, add a bit more half and half, milk or heavy cream to your portion and heat using the microwave or in an oven safe dish until hot.
VISIT THE RECIPE INDEX TO SEARCH FOR MORE RECIPES BY CATEGORY.
More Mac and Cheese Recipes
- Herbed Grilled Chicken Mac and Cheese
- Italian Sausage Macaroni and Cheese
- Velveeta Shells & Cheese
- Cheddar Ale Mac n' Cheese
- Bacon & Cheddar Mac n' Cheese
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Chicken Cordon Bleu Mac and Cheese
Equipment
- Large Pot (or pasta pot)
Ingredients
- 2 cups elbow macaroni
- 1 cup diced cooked chicken
- 1 cup diced ham
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 ½ cups half & half
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
- 4 ounces Swiss cheese (shredded or diced)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil with some salt over high heat.
- Add the macaroni and cook until the pasta is a little undercooked (al dente); approximately 7-8 minutes. Drain the water from the pasta and place back into the pot.
- While the pasta is cooking, you can make the cheese sauce. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat; then add the flour to form a roux.
- Next add the half & half, mustard, chives, Swiss cheese, salt and pepper. Whisk together until the cheese has melted and the cheese sauce has thickened.
- Remove from heat; then add the diced chicken and ham. Mix well; then pour the cheese sauce over the pasta and toss to coat.
- In a small bowl combine the panko breadcrumbs and melted butter. Place the macaroni into a 2-quart baking dish; then top with the breadcrumbs.
- Place the baking dish on a sheet pan, sprinkle with parsley and bake for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is hot and bubbly and the breadcrumbs are lightly browned.
PHogan says
I printed out several recipes and ended up making this one first. I thought I would need to try several to find a good one, and maybe combine them. Not necessary--this was delicious. The only change I made was to skip the breadcrumbs--we do not care for them on top of our casseroles.
Carrie's Experimental Kitchen says
I'm so glad you liked the recipe, thank you for trying!