bacon & egg mac with pimento cheese sauce

- breakfast -

​if i can find a way to eat things like pizza (see: my breakfast pizza recipe) and mac and cheese for breakfast, i will. this recipe relies heavily on my breakfast trinity (if you have no idea what i'm talking about go see my breakfast pizza recipe). this time, however, it is joined by pasta and pimento cheese... what's not to love?
​​

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
1 cup milk, plus more as needed
3 tbsp pimento cheese
3/4 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
2 tbsp garlic salt, or 2 tsp garlic powder & 1 1/2 tablespoon salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1 tbsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
1 box (8 oz) of your pasta of choice (I used Banza chickpea gemelli), cooked according to package instructions
4 pieces of bacon, cooked 'til crisp, chopped
1/8 cup caramelized onions (see my guide here)
extra virgin olive oil spray
1/4 cup italian seasoned bread crumbs
3 egg yolks
​​

DIRECTIONS

1. in a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. once melted, whisk in the flour.
2. once the mixture starts to get foamy and bubbly and remain so for approximately 1 minute, add the milk, whisking to combine. 
3. whisk the mixture until it starts to thicken. turn the heat off and add the pimento cheese, spices, and pepper jack. stir to combine.
4. once the cheese is fully incorporated into the sauce, add the pasta and toss to coat. add the bacon and the caramelized onions. 
5. spray an 8x8 inch baking dish with cooking spray and pour the pasta and sauce into the pan. top with any extra bacon and onions if you have it. then spread the bread crumbs over it in an even layer.
6. broil on low until golden and slightly bubbly, approximately 5 minutes. 
7. using a wooden spoon, gently press a small hole into the top of the mac. carefully lay the egg yolk into that crevice. sprinkle with salt and paprika and broil until you can see where the salt has sunk into the yolk, but be careful to not overcook the yolk. serve immediately.