Great news from the holiday front! National Fried Chicken Day and National Macaroni Day fall back-to-back—talk about perfect timing! With this delicious duo, you can enjoy leftovers, mix and match, or combine the days into one epic meal. Here’s a recipe for each day…get creative and enjoy them however you like! (National Cheese Day would love a Mac and Cheese shout on June 4th out too!)

Southern Fried Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken cut up (or 8 pieces of your favorite cuts of chicken)
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 Tablespoons hot sauce
• 2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• peanut oil (for frying)
• Flaked salt (for serving, optional)

Instructions

1. Place 1 whole chicken, cut up in a large bowl. Sprinkle on top of the chicken: 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 teaspoons garlic powder and 2 teaspoons onion powder then toss to coat the chicken in the spices.
2. Add 2 cups buttermilk and 2 Tablespoons hot sauce, stir until everything is combined. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, but it’s best if you can let it sit overnight.
3. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together 2 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup cornstarch, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 teaspoons paprika and 2 teaspoons black pepper. Set aside.
4. Taking the chicken pieces one at a time, let the excess buttermilk drip off. Coat in the flour mixture, make sure the chicken is well coated. Shake off any excess. Set the chicken aside and let it sit for a few minutes until the coating starts to look a little pasty.
5. Fill up a deep fryer with peanut oil (or neutral frying oil of your choice) and preheat to 325°F – you may need to turn down the heat to 300°F if you notice the skin is getting dark too quickly.Also, if using a cast iron skillet, please remember it holds heat very well so it is easy for it to get too hot so please monitor closely.
6. Carefully add the piece of chicken to the deep fryer. Fry until golden brown, turning every few minutes. You will need to fry in batches so you do not overcrowd the fryer.
7. Chicken is done when golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Depending on the size of the chicken, dark meat takes about 12-14 minutes and white meat takes 8-10 minutes.
8. When the chicken is done frying, place it on a paper towel lined sheet tray and immediately sprinkle a little flaked salt on top. Continue with the rest of the chicken pieces.

Mac and Cheese

Ingredients

• 1 lb. dried elbow pasta
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 2 1/2 cups half and half 
• 4 cups shredded medium cheddar cheese divided (measured after shredding
• 2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese divided (measured after shredding)
• 1/2 Tbsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. paprika smoked paprika

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and grease a 3 qt baking dish (9×13″).  Set aside.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  When boiling, add dried pasta and cook 1 minute less than the package directs for al dente.  Drain and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil to keep from sticking.
3. While water is coming up to a boil, shred cheeses and toss together to mix, then divide into three piles.  Approximately 3 cups for the sauce, 1 1/2 cups for the inner layer, and 1 1/2 cups for the topping.
4. Melt butter in a large saucepan over MED heat.  Sprinkle in flour and whisk to combine.  Mixture will look like very wet sand.  Cook for approximately 1 minute, whisking often.  Slowly pour in about 2 cups or so of the half and half, while whisking constantly, until smooth.  Slowly pour in the remaining half and half plus the whole milk, while whisking constantly, until combined and smooth.
5. Continue to heat over MED heat, whisking very often, until thickened to a very thick consistency.  It should almost be the consistency of a semi thinned out condensed soup.
6. Remove from the heat and stir in spices and 1 1/2 cups of the cheeses, stirring to melt and combine.  Stir in another 1 1/2 cups of cheese, and stir until completely melted and smooth.
7. In a large mixing bowl, combine drained pasta with cheese sauce, stirring to combine fully.  Pour half of the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish.  Top with 1 1/2 cups of shredded cheeses, then top that with the remaining pasta mixture.
8. Sprinkle the top with the last 1 1/2 cups of cheese and bake for 15 minutes, until cheesy is bubbly and lightly golden brown.  

Enjoy your perfect holiday combo!