Mac and cheese is one of the major pregnancy cravings I’ve been having. I normally (when not knocked up) cook stuff from Cooking Light, but I figure I’m building a person, so I should probably eat the full-fat version.
As far as flavor goes, I really dig the frozen Stouffer’s Red Box mac and cheese, but I also love the baked kind that tastes almost eggy, with the nice crusty cheese on top. Really, as long as the cheese flavor is sharp and not mild (I always throw in some blue cheese into my mac and cheese, for example) I will probably like it.
Throw me a recipe so I can make some mac and cheese tonight!
My online librarian network tends to enjoy mac & cheese. As such, we set up the (still growing): Librarian Mac n Cheese wiki. Several recipes are there - use any that strike your fancy!
San Giorgio had a good recipe printed on their macaroni boxes. I don’t see it posted on their web site, but the next time you’re going shopping you might want to check.
I got it! I got it!
So fracking simple, yet yummy beyond all belief.
First you make a white sauce
4 Tablespoons butter or margarine (go crazy use butter)
4 Tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
Place butter in a small microwave safe dish and melt.
Blend in flour and salt to make a smooth paste. Set aside.
Place milk in a large microwave safe bowl (I use a 2 quart Pyrex measuring cup) and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes.
Add the butter/flour/salt paste to the milk and whisk using a wire whisk.
Microwave 1 minute at a time, whisking after each time until thick. (Will probably take 4-5 minutes total)
Add 2-2.5 cups of cheese whisk and microwave until melted and smooth. If using cheddar shred the cheese and add just a bit at a time to prevent the sauce from becoming grainy. I generally use 1/2 Velveeta and 1/2 cheddar.
Add to about 1/2 package of cooked elbow macaroni in a big assed casserole dish. (depending on your personal preference in mac to cheese ratio.) Don’t forget to lube the dish with either butter, or Pam to ease clean up.
Bake for 20-30 minutes at 350F.
Options:
Panko on the top before baking
Finely chopped onion in the mix.
Different kinds of cheese.
This also freezes well, and can be reheated in the microwave. My daughter would have me make her TV dinners to take back to college. This was one of her favorites.
Also if you want a white sauce for veggie or what ever, use the above and stop just before the add cheese part.
I use a bechamel sauce mixed with whatever cheese is in the fridge (which means never Velveeta or American :p) and I season with fresh nutmeg and ground mustard.
Several weeks ago, my hubby and I visited Miss Gypsy and her hubby for a cook out, and she served mac and cheese, the best I’d ever eaten. I took a double batch of it to yesterday’s Gettysdope and it disappeared within the hour, so it must be OK (and it’s my fave mac and cheese recipe now). It’s not low-fat by any means, but it is high protein, and it does not start without a bechamel, which makes it more agreeable for my (temperamental) cook top. Here ya go:
2C Barilla Plus elbow noodles
2C whole milk (I guess you could use low-fat, but I wouldn’t try it)
10oz Velveeta, cubed
2C shredded mild cheddar
4 slices white American cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350
Boil noodles in large pot of generously salted water. Only boil for about 7 minutes, you don’t want to over-cook.
Drain noodles and rinse with cold water (to stop the cooking process)
In same pot, put milk and cubed Velveeta. Stir frequently until Velveeta is almost melted. Add shredded cheddar. Stir frequently until smooth.
Add white American cheese, stir until American is completely melted, and sauce is totally smooth. Salt and pepper to taste (I like to go lighter on the salt, because the cheese is somewhat salty, and heavier on the pepper).
Add noodles back into the sauce.
Pour into 2qt baking dish (I spray mine with non-stick spray first to help with clean-up).
Bake for 30 min. or until top begins to turn golden.
This is, without question the best mac and cheese recipe I’ve tried. Everywhere I’ve taken it, it’s been a hit. I haven’t been able to bring myself to make the stuff out of the blue box since I found it.
This one is simple and freakin’ delicious. Pay no attention to those who sneer at American cheese.
Recipe: Crusty Macaroni and Cheese
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
3 tablespoons butter
12 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
12 ounces American cheese or cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
1 pound elbow pasta, boiled in salted water until just tender, drained, and rinsed under cold water
1/8 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
Salt
2/3 cup whole milk.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Use one tablespoon butter to thickly grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Combine grated cheeses and set aside two heaping cups for topping.
In a large bowl, toss together the pasta, cheeses, cayenne (if using) and salt to taste. Place in prepared pan and evenly pour milk over surface. Sprinkle reserved cheese on top, dot with remaining butter and bake, uncovered, 45 minutes. Raise heat to 400 degrees and bake 15 to 20 minutes more, until crusty on top and bottom.
Erm. My Mac N Cheez recipe costs about $80 to make. It includes truffles. (The fungus, not the chocolate thingies.)
Still want the recipe?
I’m writing a cookbook and would be happy to paste the recipe here. What would be really cool is if people could try it and then offer me feedback: what substitutions did you make, what techniques did you use that were different from what I recommended, what worked, what didn’t work, what would you try differently…
But if there’s no takers on $80 Mac n Cheez, I totally understand. It does seem excessive. (But it is almost as good as sex.)
Um, I would like to at least see what $80.00 mac and cheese looks like. I have yet to find a recipie that I have thought really hit all the notes I want in a mac and cheese, so I may even give it a try.
1 T shallots, finely minced
½ cup white wine, like a Chardonnay, or Chenin blanc
1 cup whole milk
½ cup shredded white sharp cheddar, preferably organic
½ cup shredded asiago and/or parmesan, preferably the $10 stuff
½ cup shredded gruyere and/or fontina
¼ cup bleu cheese
½ cup diced brie
½ cup wagon wheel pasta
½ cup spiral pasta
½ cup shells
½ cup elbow macaroni
½ teaspoon white truffle oil
½ teaspoon black truffle oil
1/8 teaspoon shaved or minced black truffles
1 T. butter
1/8 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
½ teaspoon dry mustard
½ teaspoon paprika
Preheat oven to 325˚F. Set milk out – bring to room temperature. Chop shallots very finely and sauté 1 T. butter until soft, do not allow shallots to carmelize. Deglaze with white wine, 1-2 Tablespoons, whisk and reduce until almost dry. Add milk slowly, whisking until smooth. Shred cheeses, add gradually, whisking until smooth. Add salt to 1 gallon of water and bring to a boil. Chuck in all noodles together and boil 10 minutes. Drain noodles, but do not rinse. Chuck noodles into a casserole dish. Whisk dry mustard, paprika, salt, and pepper into cheese sauce. Add milk or sour cream if too thick. Add a tiny bit of black and white truffle oils, stir in. Pour cheese sauce over partially cooked noodles. Cover and bake 20–30 minutes. Halfway through baking time, stir in shaved truffles, re-cover. After removing from oven, allow to rest ten minutes. Drizzle with black and white truffle oils and a dash of paprika, serve immediately.
The cost is in the truffles and the truffle oil. Also, I’m not buying Kraft blocks o’ cheese; I’m getting the cheese from the gourmet section in the grocery store, or places like Whole Foods or the Fresh Market. Four cheeses + truffle oil = $50-75 easy.
No doubt, you are loaded up with truffles. And not small amounts either.
If I were going to make this and deviate from the recipie at all, I would probably go with just the black truffle oil and probably skip the blue cheese and the brie to cut WAY back on cost. It wouldn’t really be the same, but damn thats a lot of truffle.