Friday, March 27, 2009

Mac and Cheese: Two Ways

Somehow tonight we ended up with bag o'Caesar salad for dinner (not pictured) and



This, which the 9-year-old scarfed up (no salad)

And



This, compliments of Giada De Laurentiis from the Food Network.

You can put ham in this if you want, but really, it is quite perfect and totally decadent as an ovo-lacto vegetarian delight.

Here's the recipe. It goes great with any movie on AMC on Friday night. This feeds 4 very generously with plenty of leftovers for Saturday morning breakfast. Come on. You can't always eat cold pizza.

Macaroni and Cheese

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

Prep Time:
10 min
Inactive Prep Time:
10 min
Cook Time:
25 min
Level:
Easy
Serves:
6 servings

Ingredients

  • Butter, for greasing dish
  • 12 ounces wide egg noodles
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for pasta water
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cups (packed) grated Fontina
  • 3/4 cup (packed) finely grated Parmesan
  • 3/4 cup (packed) grated mozzarella
  • 4 ounces cooked ham, diced, optional
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Butter a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish and set aside. Cook the noodles in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Drain well, but do not rinse.

Whisk the cream, milk, flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper in large bowl to blend. Stir in 1 cup Fontina, 1/2 cup Parmesan, 1/2 cup mozzarella, ham, if using, and parsley. Add the noodles and toss to coat. Transfer the noodle mixture to the prepared baking dish. Toss the remaining 1 cup Fontina, 1/4 cup Parmesan, and 1/4 cup mozzarella in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the cheese mixture over the noodle mixture. Bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheese melts and begins to brown on top, about 20 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

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