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mac & cheese thread

15 years ago

I made the baked mac & cheese from "The Best REcipe" to take to a potluck today (also the chocolate chess pie from "Baking from the Heart." ) Later in the week I plan to use one I got from this site and printed, but now can't find, followed by the lightened one from the America's Test Kitchen website. Mmmmmm......much more treadmill needed!

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Comments (7)

User
15 years ago
Was this it/

Kframes Mac and Cheese

First off, let me say that the basic recipe comes from Alton Brown, but I have changed it and added to it. I used two kinds of cheese, NY Sharp Cheddar and Greuyer. You can use any combination of cheeses you want. Next time I might try adding Asagio, as well.

If you don't like cayanne pepper, you can certainly either cut back on it or omit it, but I like the bite it gives this recipe.

1/2 pound elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon of cayanne pepper
1 tablespoon powdered mustard
3 cups milk
1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced
3 or 4 cloves of garlic, smashed or diced fine
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 large egg, light beaten
12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
6 to 8 strips of bacon, fried crisp, drained, and crumbled
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
Topping:
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, in a separate pot, melt the butter and let it foam out.

Add the onion and garlic with a pinch of kosher salt and lightly sautee until they start to turn carmel colored and soft.

Whisk in the flour and mustard and keep it moving for about five minutes. Make sure it's free of lumps. Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, cayanne pepper, and paprika.

Simmer for ten minutes and remove the bay leaf.

Temper in the egg. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese and the bacon.

Season with salt and pepper.

Fold the macaroni into the mix and pour into a 2-quart casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.

Melt the butter in a saute pan and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for five minutes before serving.
User
15 years ago
or one of theses

Here is a link that might be useful: Mac and cheese
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Kframe - Mac and Cheese recipe
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Comments (5)
BB, Sounds interesting. Is it like a hamburger helper thing? I'm trying to imagine where this would be in the store. I'm always on board for Mac & Cheese. This is one of my favorites: Patti LaBelle's Over the Rainbow Mac-n-cheese Ingredients: 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 pound elbow macaroni 1/2 cup butter PLUS 1 tablespoon 1/2 cup shredded Muenster cheese 1/2 cup shredded mild Cheddar cheese 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese 2 cups half & half 1 cup Velveeta, cut into small cubes 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 1/4 teaspoon PenseyÂs 4S salt 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground Topping: 3 tablespoons butter 1 cup panko bread crumbs Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 350. 2. Lightly butter a deep 2 1/2 quart casserole. 3. Cook pasta, add the oil then the elbow macaroni and cook until macaroni is just tender (about 7 minutes). Drain well and return to the pot. 4. In a small saucepan, melt the first measure of butter (1/2 cup butter PLUS 1 tablespoon. Stir into the macaroni. 5. In a large bowl, mix the Muenster, mild and sharp Cheddar cheese and the Monterey Jack cheese. 6. To the macaroni, add the half & half, 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheeses, the cubed Velveeta and the eggs. SAVE Â½ cup for topping 7. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the buttered casserole. 8. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese and dot with the remaining butter. Melt the butter in a sautÃ© pan and toss the panko to coat. Top the macaroni with panko. 9. Bake until it is bubbling around the edges, about 35 minutes. Serve hot.
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LOL OK I'll post. I used this recipe - with a few modifications, in parenthesis Tillamook, Beer and Bacon Mac and CheeseDescription: 2006 Tillamook Macaroni and Cheese Contest, Karen Harris - Denver, CO Regional Finalist Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups large macaroni 2 teaspoons salt, divided 2 tablespoons TillamookÃÂ® Butter (whatever I had in the fridge) 1 tablespoon light flavor olive oil 1 large shallot, finely minced (onion) 3 tablespoons all purpose flour 2 cups whole milk (one can evap milk, topped off with lager) 8 ounces TillamookÃÂ® Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded (Trader Joe's extra sharp shredded Cheddar) 1/2 cup dark beer (in addition to the 'topped off' evap milk) 6 slices precooked bacon, sliced into 1" pieces (not in this house) 2 teaspoons full strength, prepared stone ground mustard (YES I have a Sierra Nevada beer mustard!!!) 1 teaspoon garlic powder (fresh) 1 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. (nope, I just mixed the macaroni into the cheese sauce) In a large pot, over medium-high heat, bring two quarts water and 1 teaspoon salt to a full rolling boil. Gradually add macaroni and boil approximately 15 minutes or until pasta reaches desired tenderness. Drain. Melt butter and olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. SautÃÂ© shallots in butter and olive oil for approximately 2 minutes or until they begin to turn transparent. Add flour to the pan, stirring constantly until a smooth paste forms. Stirring constantly, gradually add milk and continue cooking until mixture is thick and bubbly (mixture should coat the back of a spoon). Add 6 ounces of the cheese and stir until completely melted (I dumped all eight ounces). Remove from heat and add beer, bacon, mustard, garlic powder, pepper and remaining salt. Stir well. (I skipped this step as mentioned) Spray a 9Ã¢ÂÂ x 9" square glass pan with non-stick cooking spray. In the large pot, combine macaroni and cheese sauce and stir. Pour into 9Ã¢ÂÂ x 9" baking dish, cover with foil and place into preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove foil and sprinkle the remaining 2 ounces of the shredded cheese and continue cooking, uncovered for another 15 minutes. Remove macaroni and cheese from the oven. Allow to cool for approximately 5 minutes before serving. Here is a link that might be useful: original recipe
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I also think it would freeze well, all that fat from the cheese, sausage and the dairy helps. I'd probably add the hash browns after the dish thawed and just before baking, but that's just me, I'd want them crunchy and not at all mushy, which would be my fear if they are on top of that casserole . So, if you don't want to do that, I'd assemble and freeze, then thaw in the refrigerator and cook. You'll have to add cooking time because your dish will be cold, not still warm from being freshly made and assembled. Just be sure it's hot in the middle before the broil step and you should be fine. Annie
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1 pound macaroni 1 stick butter 1 quart heavy cream 1/4 cup flour 15 slices American cheese (not the individually wrapped ones, get a good one) 6 cups shredded cheese of your choice, give or take another handful or two. I use cheddar, Sharp if cooking for my extended family, mild mixed with monterey jack if cooking for SO. Use what you like. Swiss, Gruyere, Muenster, provolone, parm, whatever. Cook the pasta in salted water and drain. Melt the butter, cook the flour in the butter for a minute or so then whisk in the heavy cream. When the sauce starts to thicken slightly, add the american cheese and whisk through until melted, then add 4 cups of shredded cheese. Mix in the macaroni, pour into a baking dish and top with remaining 2 cups of cheese. Bake at 375 until brown around the edges. This is my basic recipe. Depending on your audience you can of course add seasonings to your taste. Salt in the pasta water is typically enough for me, but i will sometimes add cayenne or some garlic powder if cooking it for my family. Sometimes a shake or two of Lawrys seasoning salt or some sort of cajun mix. Sometimes I will lightly sweat some finely diced onion and minced fresh garlic in the butter before I add the flour. Just depends. Never mustard though. Nothing against it, never tried it. Dried mustard is not something i keep in my pantry. Any recipe with eggs is a HACK. They are completely unnecessary, as they do nothing, IMO.
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lakeguy35
15 years ago
Here's a link to Kframes post from earlier this year. Was this it?

David

Here is a link that might be useful: mac and cheese
lakeguy35
15 years ago
LOL! Sharon beat me too it!

One of my best mac and cheese happend when I used up a bunch of cheese in the fridge. I coudn't tell you what all went into it...it was great though.

David
palomalou
Original Author
15 years ago
Yes--that's the one! I printed it out, but didn't find it again .The Best REcipe one was a big hit with the potluck this noon. Later this week, KFrame's!
Lisa_in_Germany
15 years ago
I won't be joining in on the mac and cheese trials because my family really loves Kframe's Mac and Cheese. I am glad you started this because I have thought about doing this several times. I hope to join you in some of your searches.
Lisa
kframe19
15 years ago
You know, I can't tell all of you just how much it pleases me (strokes my ego? :-D ) to have people go this gaga over one of my recipes.

I'm really glad that all of you have liked it so much.

I mentioned in another thread that I made it for my Mom over the T-giving break, but used leftover ham (not sugar cured) in it.

It was VERY good that way, too.

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