Macaroni and Cheese
I had this discussion with my family over the holidays - “what’s in your macaroni and cheese ?” It sounds innocent enough but be warned, you may not want this debate if there are cooks in the house !
I survived on “mac n’ cheez” in college. I know a lot of guys who did. However, I eventually learned to cook and the boxed synthetic orange hollow noodles became a distant memory. However, the comfort of hot pasta and warm cheese lingered in the back of my brain like a happy dream just as the dawn light ends a long night’s slumber - foggy but pleasant.
A few years ago I finally broke out the pots and pans and decided to recreate *real* macaroni and cheese. For the most part, I succeeded. You can embellish it all you want, but you start with three - and only three - ingredients.
- 2lb box of dry macaroni
- 1lb Velveeta (or generic brand) cheese product
- 1lb sharp cheddar cheese (good stuff)
That is it. Cook the macaroni and then set aside. You can add 2 oz of butter to keep it from sticking to itself if you feel the need. Now, in the the same pot you just cooked the macaroni, chunk up the Velveeta and the cheddar. Warm the cheeses until the Velveeta melts. Turn of the heat and let the cheddar melt form the residual heat. You don’t want to burn the cheese. Mix the cheeses together. Now, add the macaroni back into the pot, gradually. I let the cheese cool enough so it is not too hot to touch and them I mix by hand. this allows good mixing without destroying the macaroni.
It makes a side dish for 12 or a main dish for 6-8.
If you want to embelish, you can add chopped green onion, diced, red-yellow-green peppers, and you can top with some roasted wheat germ.
January 1st, 2008 at 23:31
Have you tried starting with a roux? It’s a little extra trouble, but the cheese blends better. You take 2 tblsp each of butter and flour and stir them very gently over low heat, incorporating all the flour into the butter. Then add a little milk until you have a bubbly paste and the flour is just cooked. To that mixture you gradually add the cheese, alternating with milk.
My first year living on my own I made a lot of mac and cheese. Some nights I would get home from work so hungry that I ate most of the cheese while the macaroni was still cooking. Even sitting down to eat seemed like an unnecessary refinement in those days. The roux was something I’d learned from my grandmother, who taught me how to make bechemel sauce. After I abandoned the Wolf Child approach to dinner, I remembered her roux instructions, and it took mac and cheese to a whole new level.
January 2nd, 2008 at 08:03
I’ve used rouxs (is that the right plurual ?) for a number of recipes. In this case, I opted for the ultimate in a stripped down recipe. I would not be surprised if you reduced the milk in your process, and then let the cheese firm up again, you’d end up with something very similar to Veleeta - only more healthy. If I need/want to make my cheese creamier, I melt just the Velveeta and then I can add cream or whole milk slowly.
BTW - regarding the whole “wolf child” dining experience, you need to see the kitchen scene from “must love dogs” !
January 2nd, 2008 at 11:30
In my old age I’m turning into a roux fundie. (I think the plural of roux is still roux.) Velveeta used to be one of my guilty pleasures (along with Ritz crackers) - but lately I’m finding it hard to digest. So my cheese sauce recipe is Monterrey Jack plus sharp cheddar melted into the roux. These days I generally make my cheesy bechamel sauce for creamed spinach - all the comfort of mac and cheese but a bit less guilt.