We’re getting REALLY close to the biggest football game of the year, so I’m excited to share another fun game-day-inspired recipe with you today! These Baked Mac-and-Cheese Bites star one of our all-time favorite comfort foods, paired with a tasty cheddar-and-Ritz-cracker crust. You bake everything together in individual muffin cups for a fun little appetizer-style presentation.

For some added game-day spirit, I also topped the finished recipe with little football-themed party picks. You can download the free printable for these flag toppers at the bottom of this post.

MAC-AND-CHEESE BITES WITH CRACKER CRUST

Servings: 12
Time: approximately 45 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 box macaroni & cheese*, prepared as directed
• 2-1/4 cups (or 1.5 sleeves) Ritz crackers, finely crushed
• 1-1/2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Pinch red pepper flakes

*You can also use 4-5 cups of your favorite homemade mac-n-cheese.

Instructions:

1. Prepare macaroni and cheese according to directions on the box.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare your muffin pan with cooking spray.

3. In a large bowl, combine crushed Ritz crackers, cheddar cheese, and melted butter. Mix until well combined. (Tip: A food processor will make crushing the crackers a whole lot easier!)

4. Divide the cracker mixture amongst 12 muffin cups, then use your fingers to firmly press the crust into each cup.

Here’s a closer look at the pressed crusts. Looks good already, right?!

5. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, milk, sour cream, salt, and a pinch of red pepper flakes, mixing well. Don’t worry if the sour cream doesn’t blend in perfectly smooth. Mine didn’t, and the final recipe still turned out great. In fact, my 4 year old matter-of-factly declared: “This is the best food I ever tasted.” ;)

6. Add the egg/milk mixture to the cooked macaroni, mixing until all the ingredients are well combined, then place 2-3 tablespoons of the macaroni mixture into each muffin cup, on top of the crust.

7. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the mac-n-cheese bites are lightly golden on top.

8. Let the finished pies cool slightly before removing them from the muffin pan, then garnish with a free printable party pick (download below). Serve warm and enjoy!

DIY Game Day Party Picks

These DIY game day party picks are easy to make, and designed especially with this upcoming weekend in mind! To make them, simply download the PDF, then print and cut out the little flags. Tape or hot glue the flags to appetizer picks or regular toothpicks, and you’re done!

Note: You can also hot glue these little flags to straws to “theme up” your game day drinks instead. 😉

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Coca-Cola^® for this post. As always, the content and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the companies that make it possible for us to keep the creative content coming!