Sunday, January 4, 2009

Comfort Food Recipe Food Swap

Today, I sent the recipe for the Comfort Food Recipe Swap. Along with the recipe, was the required note, explaining my history with this food. I explained in that note how it was something I ate a lot of as a kid, and learned to cook early in life. I went on to tell how it was something I could prepare while in my dorm room at college and that the recipe that I was sending had a long family tradition - it was passed to me by my sister, who received it from my father, who found it in a newspaper article. Here is the recipe for my comfort food:

Macaroni & Cheese

8 T (1 stick) butter, divided use
6 T all-purpose flour
1/2 t cayenne pepper
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
3 3/4 c hot milk
4 c Cheddar cheese, grated, divided use
1 lb elbow macaroni, cooked al dente, rinsed in cold water
1/2 c heavy cream
1/2 c fresh bread crumbs

-Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter an 8x11 baking dish.
-Melt 6 T of butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, about 4 minutes (flour mixture must foam as it cooks, or sauce will have a raw-flour taste). Stir in cayenne and season to taste with salt and white pepper.
-Whisk in hot milk, 1/4 c at a time, and cook, whisking constantly, until sauce thickens. Reduce heat to low and stir in 2 c of cheese. Cook, stirring, until cheese melts, about 2 minutes. Combine cheese sauce and cooked macaroni in a large bowl and season with salt.
-Sprinkle 1/2 c cheese over prepared cooking dish. Pat 1/3 of the pasta in the dish, top with 1/2 c of cheese, then repeat, layering pasta and cheese, another layer of pasta and ending with cheese. Pour cream over assembled macaroni and cheese. Melt remaining 2 T of butter in a skillet. Add bread crumbs to butter and stir to coat well, then sprinkle over macaroni and cheese. Bake until crust is golden, about 30 minutes. Allow to rest for about 15 minutes before serving.

1 comment:

Wanda said...

Ancient Chinese secret. :)