Baked Chicken Fingers & Homemade Mac n' Cheese

I love these recipes. Everyone in my house eats these including my pickiest eater: Fax. Well, he'll eat the chicken. But my children like both. The mac n' cheese takes the same amount of time to make as the nasty boxed kind. (Sorry, I hate it.) It's a little more effort, but same amount of time. So here it is:

Baked Chicken Fingers:

Ingredients:
2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken cut into strips or chunks
1 cup buttermilk
1 box Extra Crispy Shake n' Bake

Directions:
Marinade chicken in buttermilk for at least 1 hour and up to 12 hours. Preheat oven to 400 F. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Remove individual pieces of chicken from buttermilk and coat with Shake n' Bake. Place pieces on sheet pan. (You can place them really close without really touching, but don't pack them in too tight or they won't cook evenly. One pan feeds my whole family.) Bake for 10 minutes, flip chicken, bake 10 more minutes.

Homemade Mac n' Cheese

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2-1/2 cups whole milk
2-1/2 cups grated cheese
12 oz. elbow macaroni noodles (you could also use small shells)

Directions:
Bring large pot of water to boil and cook macaroni noodles for 10-12 minutes. Once noodles have been added to boiling water, melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and salt and mix well. Cook 2-3 minutes or until a very light golden-brown color. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly until it boils and thickens. Allow to boil, while stirring, for about 2 minutes. Add cheese and turn off heat. Gently stir in cheese until smooth. Add to drained macaroni noodles and mix to combine. You can eat as is, or put in an 8x8 casserole dish, sprinkle top with cheese, and bake for 20 minutes at 350 F. (400 F if it's been in the refrigerator.)
You can also use this cheese sauce on top of broccoli, or just about anything.

I usually make the macaroni in the morning when I marinade the chicken. Then while the oven is heating I bread the chicken. I cook both the chicken and the macaroni in the oven together at 400 F. I put the chicken on the top rack, and macaroni on the bottom. When the chicken is done, I let the macaroni finish cooking on the top rack for a few minutes.