Saturday, November 1, 2008

Barefoot Bloggers Catch up: Mac 'n Cheese

Yesterday was a lazy day. I woke up about 8 but just puttered around the house a little and watched TV in bed for most of the day. I just couldn't seem to get going. It didn't help that I didn't really have anything planned for the day. Finally at about 3PM I decided to get up and shower and find something to do.

I'm starting to make the recipes that I want to catch up on for Daring Bakers and Barefoot Bloggers. I decided to do the Grown Up Mac 'n Cheese tonight. If you want to make it for real you should use the link and follow the real recipe. I interpreted it pretty loosely. But it came out good so mine is below. It's quite rich and really creamy.




As a tribute to Pottsville (or maybe Catholics or where ever it stems from) I had it with fish sticks. No stewed tomatoes though. THose are just ick.

  • 4 ounces thick-sliced bacon
  • Kosher salt
  • 2 cups elbow macaroni or cavatappi
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 4 ounces Asiago cheese, grated
  • 3 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated
  • 2 ounces Gorgonzola
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • Pinch nutmeg
  • A dash of Frank's Red Hot
  • A sprinkling of dried parsley and basil
  • 1 cup of frozen peas
  • Panko bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Cook the bacon in a large pan. Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and crumble when it is cool enough to handle. Leave the drippings in the pan. Add flour to the drippings and mix well to incorporate. Add the milk to the pan and bring up to a boil, mixing well to incorporate until thick and smooth.

Off the heat, add the everything except the pasta, breadcrumbs and a small handful of cheddar cheese to the sauce.

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. Drain well. Add the cooked pasta, peas and crumbled bacon to the sauce and stir well. Pour into a large baking dish.

Sprinkle breadcrumbs and any leftover cheese over the pasta. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top. Allow to cool for a few minutes before eating if you don't want to burn yourself.

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