BBQ Macaroni Bake with Cornbread Topping

I came up with this one night trying to "figure out" what dinner was going to be. Grabbed some things from the pantry and what turned out was a keeper.

• Preparation Time: 10 mins
• Cooking Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Calories: 569 Calories

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• ⅔ cup milk
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• ½ cup diced onion
• 1 (16 ounce) package elbow macaroni
• 1 ½ pounds ground turkey
• cooking spray
• 1 ½ cups barbeque sauce (such as KC Masterpiece® Original)
• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes (Optional)
• 1 (12 ounce) package shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 (8 ounce) bag frozen corn
• 2 (7.5 ounce) packages cornbread mix (such as Jiffy®)

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain.

Step 2

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Step 3

While pasta boils, heat oil in a 3-quart pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook and stir until onion is translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add ground turkey and cook and stir until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in barbeque sauce, corn, and red pepper flakes. Mix well, reduce heat, and let simmer for 5 minutes.

Step 4

Meanwhile, mix cornbread mix, milk, and eggs together in a bowl. Set aside.

Step 5

Combine macaroni, meat mixture, Cheddar cheese, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Pour mixture into the prepared dish. Spoon cornbread batter on top.

Step 6

Bake in the preheated oven until cornbread is light golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before serving.