Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Makes: 4 to 6 servings
Time: About 45 minutes
One of the most popular recipes in the original How to Cook Everything, which I attributed to too many people growing up with what the Canadians call "Kraft dinner." The real thing is rich, filling, delicious, and dead easy. You can change the type of cheese you use: Try blue cheese, goat cheese, smoked Gouda, or even mascarpone. Or mix in some crisp-cooked chunks of thick-cut bacon or pancetta, about .5 cup.
Salt
2.5 cups milk (low-fat is fine)
2 bay leaves
1 pound elbow, shell, ziti, or other cut pasta
4 tablespoons (.5 stick) butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1.5 cups grated cheese, like sharp cheddar or Emmental
.5 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Freshly ground black pepper
.5 cup or more bread crumbs, preferably fresh (page 876)
1) Heat the oven to 400*F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it.
2) Heat the milk with the bay leaves in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. When small bubbles appear along the sides, about 5 minutes later, turn off the heat and let stand. Cook the pasta in the boiling water to the point where you would still think it needed another minute or two to become tender. Drain it, rinse it quickly to stop the cooking, and put it in a large bowl.
3) In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter; when it is foamy, add the flour and cook, stirring, until the mixture browns, about 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaves from the milk and add about .25 cup of the milk to the hot flour mixture, stirring with a wire whisk all the while. As soon as the mixture becomes smooth, add a little more milk, and continue to do so until all the milk is used up and the mixture is thick and smooth. Add the cheddar or Emmental and stir.
4) Pour the sauce over the pasta, toss in the Parmesan, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Use the remaining 1 tablespoon butter to grease a 9 x 13-inch or like-size baking pan and turn the pasta mixture into it. (You can make the dish to this point, cover, and refrigerate for up to a day; return to room temperature before proceeding.) Top liberally with bread crumbs and bake until bubbling and the crumbs turn brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve piping hot.
Now, a few things:
The recipe tasted good. Make sure you use the right amounts of the ingredients. I know that I skimped on the cheese (using Monterey Jack cheese, which seems somewhere between soft and semi-hard, not like sharp cheddar), and completely removed the Parmesan (didn't have any). Next time, I'll make the trip to the store. Mine came out kind of dry. As I was making the sauce, it looked good, but I could tell as I was pouring it that it needed more cheese. Oh well, there's always next time. Also, the timing for this must be an approximation for someone who knows the recipe. So prepare yourself whenever you're trying something new.
Next:
linecook415.blogspot.com is a very interesting blog. I heard about it from one of the chefs at work. It's a good blog, I wonder if she has other recommendations. Currently listening to his Podcast about culinary school. A lot of very good information. I am going to do more research about which culinary school I want to go to. It's like applying to college all over again. Still, I have a year and a half to change my mind with plenty of factors to influence me. Random best quote from the Podcast (be warned, I am not censoring the expletives: "That's fucked up... being bored in a kitchen. A restaurant kitchen. How does that happen? You have knives and fire! How the fuck are you bored?!" A brilliant and well-phrased thought.
Finally:
Where has this semester gone? This isn't food related, but rather life related. I have something like 5 and a half weeks of classes left. Then I'm a senior. In my senior year of college... that's surprising. I guess after 20 years of life (almost 21! A month and a half), one more 5 month period (one semester) doesn't seem like all that much. I wonder if this feeling gets exponentially stronger. I guess I'll find out when I'm older.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy reading my blog as much as I enjoy writing it. FYI, I hope at least one person has attempted or at least intends to try some of the recipes that I post. I haven't posted one yet that hasn't turned out extremely tasty. The "Olive Oil Salt Bread" which I simply call quickbread is painfully simple, quick, and delicious. Take the extra hour (should be even less time) before you eat dinner to prep and bake some fresh rolls (just divide the dough in balls and put them on a baking sheet). You will not regret it.
Cheers,
-Peter
P.S. Of course, I need to say...
How to Cook Everything was copywrited in 2008 by Doubly B Publishing Inc., and published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. in Hoboken, New Jersey. This representation of the text is intended for educational use only.
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