mac and cheese

[black hog]

So I need some help it's my son's 14th birthday Friday and for dinner he wants beef brisket baked beans and mac and cheese the brisket and beans no problem but a good mac and cheese recipe I do not have does anybody have one they're willing to share

[h20hunter]

Stand by....When I get home I'll write it up.

[Goldeneye]

I got a good recipe.  It takes a little work to make.  You may want to scale it down to adjust to the amount of people eating it.  Here it is...

                                                 "Perfect Macaroni & Cheese"

To begin, you still need to make a white sauce. A generous amount of butter is melted in a large saucepan, and then flour is stirred into it to make a loose paste. After the flour has cooked in the hot butter, hot milk is whisked in. The starch from the cooked flour expands in the milk, creating a thick, creamy sauce. The starch binds the sauce, so that when the cheese is stirred in, the result is creamy and smooth, not stringy and curdled.

It is important to use pungent cheeses, such as sharp cheddar, mixed with a little Gruyere or pecorino Romano for extra bite, since the white sauce and pasta will absorb a lot of flavor. The type of cheese used will also affect the sauce's texture: Sharp white cheddar produces the smoothest result; yellow and extra sharp cheddars can become grainy.

A good Italian brand of dried elbow macaroni will have the best consistency. Undercook your pasta so that it is the slightest bit crunchy (very al dente) in the center, then rinse it under cold water. This stops the cooking and washes off the excess starch. You might think that starch would be useful in further thickening the casserole, but it isn't; as it bakes, that extra starch merely expands and lends a mealy texture to your sauce.

The pasta will finish cooking as it bakes. The sauce will bubble, seeping into the hollows of your macaroni. When the smell of butter and browning cheese makes your stomach growl, you'll know the dish is ready to eat.

You can easily divide this recipe in half; use a 1 1/2-quart casserole dish if you do.

Serves 12
6 slices good-quality white bread, crusts removed, torn into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for dish
5 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar
2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated Gruyere or 1 1/4 cups (about 5 ounces) grated pecorino Romano
1 pound elbow macaroni

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place bread pieces in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour butter into the bowl with bread, and toss. Set the breadcrumbs aside. In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, heat milk. Melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.

2. Slowly pour hot milk into flour-butter mixture while whisking. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick.

3. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyere or 1 cup pecorino Romano. Set cheese sauce aside.

4. Fill a large saucepan with water. Bring to a boil. Add macaroni; cook 2 to 3 fewer minutes than manufacturer's directions, until outside of pasta is cooked and inside is underdone. (Different brands of macaroni cook at different rates; be sure to read the instructions.) Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Stir macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.

5. Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar and 1/2 cup Gruyere or 1/4 cup pecorino Romano; scatter breadcrumbs over the top. Bake until browned on top, about 30 minutes. Transfer dish to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes; serve.

[Bean Counter]

*tag*! 

[h20hunter]

Okay....here is what I do and I find that it is simple yet gets rave reviews. You need:

Box of shells
butter
small container, like kids milk size, of half and half
cheese: velveeta, something smoked like chedder or gouda, mozz, etc
pepper
cooked and diced bacon

Boil the shells about 1/2 to 1/3 done and set aside.

Pour the half and half into a pot and turn on the heat low. Add the butter, diced up velveeta, and some of your other cheese. Slowly....slowly warm it up and add more and more of your cheeses as you go. I'd say I use about half velveeta and half a mixture of other cheeses. As it melts keep the heat on but low and slow. Keep stirring more and more cheese in as it melts and gets blended. Add pepper to taste during this process. I'd say I use about a 1/2 stick of butter...most of this is on the fly. Taste the sauce...more cheddar? more smokey? more mozz? Feel it out.

Once ready to go just pour over your drained shells and mix it in. You want it nice and sauced up, don't be shy, pour it in! Now, sprinkle your diced bacon on top with a bit of shredded cheese, cover with foil, and bake for another 30 minutes or so at 350. Take off the foil and let the top brown just slightly.

Simple, awesome, and delicious. Don't believe me.....ask Buckmark....we had some in deer camp just last week.

[JimmyHoffa]

I like a little bit of parmesan mixed in.  Kind of gives a little different taste and texture.

[lamrith]

Okay....here is what I do and I find that it is simple yet gets rave reviews. You need:

Box of shells
butter
small container, like kids milk size, of half and half
cheese: velveeta, something smoked like chedder or gouda, mozz, etc
pepper
cooked and diced bacon

Boil the shells about 1/2 to 1/3 done and set aside.

Pour the half and half into a pot and turn on the heat low. Add the butter, diced up velveeta, and some of your other cheese. Slowly....slowly warm it up and add more and more of your cheeses as you go. I'd say I use about half velveeta and half a mixture of other cheeses. As it melts keep the heat on but low and slow. Keep stirring more and more cheese in as it melts and gets blended. Add pepper to taste during this process. I'd say I use about a 1/2 stick of butter...most of this is on the fly. Taste the sauce...more cheddar? more smokey? more mozz? Feel it out.

Once ready to go just pour over your drained shells and mix it in. You want it nice and sauced up, don't be shy, pour it in! Now, sprinkle your diced bacon on top with a bit of shredded cheese, cover with foil, and bake for another 30 minutes or so at 350. Take off the foil and let the top brown just slightly.

Simple, awesome, and delicious. Don't believe me.....ask Buckmark....we had some in deer camp just last week.

It's all about the velveeta.  some people hate on it, but it is the magic bullet of mac n cheese..

[h20hunter]

Gotta have it.

[superdown]

There is really no recipe necessary if you can make a basic bechamel and boil noodles. Then you can add volume and cheese to your liking that's really it. just ad more sauce if your going to bake it and the flavor you like. it really is humorous how much is put into the non important elements of cuisine    

[Bullkllr]

There is really no recipe necessary if you can make a basic bechamel and boil noodles. Then you can add volume and cheese to your liking that's really it. just ad more sauce if your going to bake it and the flavor you like. it really is humorous how much is put into the non important elements of cuisine

Down with what you're sayin', bro, but what the heck is that?

Beach camel...be chameleon...betcha, Mel...that's as close as I can get...

Have to say both of the non-recipes above have me hungry for some M&C 

[superdown]

Bay sha mell or a mother sauce http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%A9chamel_sauce

[Bullkllr]

Oh, white sauce, cool.

[Blacklab]

If ya can keep it lit, smoke it 

[206]

Beer-Baked Mac 'N' Cheese

http://seattletimes.com/html/foodwine/2013153592_web20mcacheese.html

It'll cost ya about a 20.

[Kittman]

My Gourmet Mac & Cheese Recipe (I made this recipe):

1 package Cellentani pasta noodles, or elbow macaroni
Oil and flour roux, (2 tablespoons flour added to oil)
2 cups water
2 cups milk
1 vegetable bouillon cube or tablespoon vegetable granules
3 tablespoons Paprika
1 tablespoon Mustard Powder
½ teaspoon White Pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced onion
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 tablespoon hot sauce (Franks, Texas Pete, whatever is on hand)
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
About 2 cups medium cheddar cheese
Mozzarella cheese topping (enough to cover top)

Method: medium high heat add vegetable cooking oil, then flour, constantly whisking/stirring the flour roux cooking about 30-45 seconds (bubbling), then gradually add water while still whisking in saucepan keep boiling till thick and add water until desired consistency is reached.  Stir in all seasonings.  Add remaining water and simmer till near boiling.  Turn down heat, add milk, then add cubed or shredded cheddar cheese and mix well until all the cheese is melted.  Turn off heat, set aside.  Boil salted water and cook pasta till fully cooked per package directions.  Drain pasta put back in pasta pot & quickly stir in eggs thoroughly, then stir in cheese sauce.  Put into sprayed baking pan and add Mozzarella cheese cover with foil and cook in oven at 375 degrees for 45 minutes.