Directions

Oil a 9x13-inch baking dish or equivalent casserole dish and preheat the oven to 375°F.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the pasta until al dente (often 1 minute less than the package recommendation). Drain well, but reserve 1 cup of the cooking water.

While the pasta boils, shred ¾ of the 16-ounce log of Dragone® Fresh Mozzarella Cheese and thinly slice the last quarter. Reserve it to the side.

In the same pot you boiled the pasta, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, reduce the heat to medium low and let it cook/bubble for 1 minute, continually whisking to avoid burning. Then, gradually whisk in the milk and raise the heat to medium high. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking frequently, until the sauce has thickened, about 3 minutes.

Reduce the heat to low and stir in the reserved pasta water, the shredded Dragone® Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, the 3-Cheese Italian Blend, cream cheese, pesto, dried onion, crushed red pepper, salt, black pepper and nutmeg. Stir until the cheese is fully melted.

Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the pasta and cherry tomatoes. Then, transfer the pasta to the prepared baking dish. Evenly layer the sliced tomatoes on top of the mac and cheese and then top with the slices of Dragone® Fresh Mozzarella Cheese.

Place the baking dish on the middle rack of the oven and bake the mac and cheese for 25 minutes or until the mozzarella is melted and the sauce is bubbling. Then, turn the oven to broil and cook for 3–5 minutes or until the mozzarella is browned.

Remove the dish from the oven, top it with the fresh basil, sprinkle with salt and fresh ground pepper and then drizzle with balsamic glaze. 

Serve rich and cheesy scoops of Caprese Mac and Cheese at your next garden party and celebrate the summer!

Tip: Top with crushed Ritz (or “butter”) crackers before broiling to add a yummy crunch.