Macaroni & Cheese

I’m sorry. I know, this isn’t right. Not fair. Totally cruel.   Bathing suit season is upon us and this here is no friend to Lycra.

 

But I had to. I promised you this and I had to make it right.

You see, I wanted to give you something that was honest to goodness-ly the easiest macaroni & cheese recipe ever invented.   The problem I've had:  real cheese–and not Velveeta or other eerily stable cheese products–really don't like to be melted, cooled and remelted again. It needs something to help it stay creamy, to help suspend it- and that thing is quite often a bechamel (milk thickened with a bit of cooked flour and butter).

So I turned to the one recipe I had heard from ten thousand people (and their mothers) was the bee’s knees. Cat’s meow. A triumph of the macaroni & cheese spirit and do you know what? It was all that and then some. This mac & cheese recipe might be the best thing since both macaroni AND cheese. Even better, it passes the most important test:  it reheats like a charm, staying creamy and ohmahgawd.....…

I just melted into a puddle remembering how good it was. Seriously, why haven’t you made this yet?

 

This week:  I'm on vacation right now. Most likely, I'm going to try and track down some cheese-filled sausages but my head is saying, “no, no, this cannot possibly be a good idea.”  Until I can come up with a recipe for these treats, I’ve left you with macaroni & cheese.....so you know I still love you. 

Now, please be warned, this makes a ton o' mac & cheese.  Not interested in going on an all-mac, all-the-time diet this week, but wishing to try the recipe at last?  I halved it and guess what? We still had three dinner’s worth of macaroni & cheese, or a full six servings. Which is, of course, what the recipe said it would make if halved, but I was in denial.

This is particularly delicious with a big, crunchy salad and a steamed vegetable, like green beans or broccoli.

Serves 12

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for casserole
6 slices white bread, crusts removed, torn into 1/4- to l/2-inch pieces
5 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons coarse salt, plus more for water
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar cheese
2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated Gruyère or 1 1/4 cups (about 5 ounces) grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 pound elbow macaroni

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place the bread in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour the melted butter into the bowl with the bread, and toss. Set the breadcrumbs aside.
Warm the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When the butter bubbles, add the flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.
While whisking, slowly pour in the hot milk a little at a time to keep mixture smooth. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick, 8 to 12 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar cheese, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyère (or 1 cup Pecorino Romano); set the cheese sauce aside.
Cover a large pot of salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook the macaroni until the outside of pasta is cooked and the inside is underdone, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Stir the macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.
Pour the mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Gruyère (or 1/4 cup Pecorino Romano), and the breadcrumbs over the top. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes (though we needed a bit more time to get it brown, but your oven may vary). Transfer the dish to a wire rack for 5 minutes; SERVE!.