Grilled Mac-N-Cheese and Pulled Pork BBQ Panini Recipe

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Food Lion. All opinions are 100% mine.

Grilled cheese. What a simple, humble, and tasty comfort food to feed our families. Did you know that April is grilled cheese month? It is! And that means now is the perfect time to enjoy our tasty upscaled grilled mac-n-cheese and pulled pork bbq panini.

This is the ultimate grilled cheese re-imagined! I’ll have to admit that my kids were a bit skeptical about trying this form of grilled cheese. I’m not exactly sure why. It all starts with a tasty Asiago bread from the Food Lion bakery. To the bread, we add two of their favorite things! Our favorite Instant Pot Pulled Pork recipe coupled with our favorite Instant Pot Beefy Mac-N-Cheese recipe. And it all comes together with a sweet honey bbq sauce, a tiny bit of butter, and the panini press.

Let’s talk for just a minute about this bread. The bakery at Food Lion is my absolute favorite and I love the new displays of all the luscious breads. The Asiago bread is so flavorful. You could try making our grilled mac-n-cheese and pulled pork bbq panini on a nice ciabatta roll or other crusty bread and that would work too, but it was so good on the Asiago. I’m really excited that Food Lion has Online Shopping with pick up or delivery

We like to make this recipe using leftover pulled pork because our pulled pork recipe makes so much it easily covers several meals! However, since I do have two pressure cookers, I have made it all at once. Here’s how it comes together. The pulled pork takes about an hour from start to finish in the Instant Pot, so you should start that well before you want to eat, or even make it the day before. It reheats well and makes enough for several meals for our family. You might want to watch for the pork shoulder to be one of the Food Lion Weekly deals but it is always a great price!

Pulled Pork Recipe for the Panini

1 Pork Shoulder or Pork Butt
Spice Blend (1/4 Cup Paprika, 2 Tablespoons Coarse Kosher Salt, 2 Tablespoons Coarse Ground Pepper, and 1 Tablespoon Dry Mustard)
I Cup Water
Instant Pot

Turn the Instant Pot on Saute and add 1 cup of water to preheat. Place the trivet inside. Cut the pork shoulder into chunks, and dip each piece in the spice blend. Place these all in the pressure cooker. Make sure the seal is properly placed, and cook on high pressure for 45 minutes. Release the pressure by turning the knob. If you prefer, you can cook this in a crock pot for about five hours on high.

Mac-N-Cheese Recipe for the Panini

If you are making this in a second pressure cooker, instead of using leftover pulled pork, start the mac-n-cheese when the pulled pork has 25 minutes remaining.

1 Box Elbow Noodles
4 Cups Beef Broth
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1 Package Shredded Triple Cheddar Blend
1 Package Shredded Colby Jack
1/2 Stick Butter

Place the beef broth, noodles, and salt in the Instant Pot. Stir. Make sure the lid is sealed properly and cook on high pressure for nine minutes. Release the pressure by turning the knob. Stir the noodles. Add the cream and butter and stir a few times to heat through. Add the cheese and stir to melt.

Stacking Your Panini

Heat your panini press. Stack a piece of Asiago with a layer of meat and a couple squeezes of bbq sauce. I didn’t really measure the bbq sauce so I’ve included a picture so you can see how much we used. Much more than this will make your panini soggy.

Add a spoonful of the mac-n-cheese and another piece of bread. Top it with a tiny sliver of butter. Place this in the heated panini press and cook for four minutes or so until the bread is toasty. Depending on the size of your panini press or indoor grill, you might be able to do two sandwiches at once.

The end result? All five of my boys, ages 10 to 47, (and yes, that includes my husband) declared the sandwich a success and something they would enjoy having again. I certainly enjoyed mine and thought the flavors melded perfectly. A nice coleslaw on the side would be the perfect complement to this tasty grilled mac-n-cheese and pulled pork bbq panini. We hope you enjoy it as much as we have! Make sure to check out these fabulous Food Lion Recipes.