Joe’s Creamy “Elevated” Mac & Cheese

by | Mar 31, 2020 | Comfort Food, Family Favorites, Main Dish, Pasta, Recipes, Vegetarian

Joe’s Creamy “Elevated” Mac & Cheese
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Desperate times call for desperate measures — and comfort food, LOTS of comfort food. And friends, these are some desperate times. Starting our third week of our Shelter-at-Home due to the Covid-19 mitigation efforts, we craved something simple, yet delicious. And what could be more comforting that a big pan of baked mac and cheese?  And of course, we had to have the ingredients on hand or be able to procure them in this weird time of scarcity. So, while this dish may not fit into the typical “healthy” category, it’s certainly good for our mental health. And we need that right now. Super creamy mac & cheese, extra tangy, with a topping of crispy buttered bread crumbs… nothing better.

This is Joe’s Mac & Cheese because our son Joe supplied the cheese and pasta that makes this delicious rendition of mac & cheese. Thanks to Joe for shopping earlier at Costco before it got crazy! Joe  knows his cheese… so he selected a Kerrygold Reserve white cheddar and sharp, salty Pecorino Romano.

So what makes this Mac & Cheese “Elevated” ?

The cheese: Please, please, don’t use pre-shredded cheese to make mac and cheese. The pre-shredded cheeses are fine to keep around to make a quick quesadilla or to sprinkle on a taco, but they just don’t melt well to make a creamy sauce. Most manufacturers use cellulose when packaging shredded cheeses to keep the little shreds from clumping together in the package. This doesn’t belong in a good homemade mac & cheese, and I can’t imagine that it’s good for us. Go for quality here. Make sure the cheese you start with has the flavor you enjoy. Using a good quality aged cheddar and a tangy hard cheese like Pecorino Romano makes it extra tasty. You can, of course, substitute other cheeses. This recipe is honestly still evolving as we try other combinations of cheeses including Gruyere, Parmesan, Monterey Jack, and your choice ultimately depends on your personal preference, and of course what’s available to you.

The milk:  Use whole milk to make this dish rich and creamy, but not too rich. I’ve made recipes that call for a combination of cream and milk and found it to be a bit overwhelming. Of course you can substitute part of the milk with 2 percent milk, but it won’t be as creamy and delicious.  Also, when making the Béchamel sauce, please heat the milk first. It mixes into the butter and flour much more smoothly if it’s warm rather than straight out of the fridge.

The pasta:  Of course you can use any small shape of pasta or macaroni, but while elbow macaroni makes a perfectly delicious mac & cheese, we really like the slight chewiness that gemelli lends to this dish. The little pasta twists just give it a nice bite and doesn’t seem to get as mushy like macaroni does sometimes.  And with any wheat based product, we try to go for organic. I can feel better about eating pasta and bread if we aren’t having a side of glyphosate with it. Organic pasta at least makes this dish a little more on the healthful side.

Buttered crumb topping: Of course you can just put plain panko on top, but taking the extra step to add melted butter and a bit of shredded hard cheese will give the topping more pizazz.

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Joe’s Creamy, Cheesy Baked Pasta – An Elevated Mac & Cheese

  • Author: Stacey McNeill
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Description

My favorite Mac & Cheese relies on really good ingredients. Try not to skimp on the quality of the cheese or the pasta, but you can certainly substitute other cheese according to your preference and availability.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound (16 oz) sharp cheddar cheese, about 4 to 5 cups shredded (use a good quality reserve cheddar like Kerrygold, aged 2 plus years)
  • 5 ounces Pecorino Romano cheese, about 1 1/4 cups shredded
  • 1 pound small pasta or macaroni (we like organic Gemelli from Garofalo)
  • 5 cups whole milk (I use A2 milk when I can find it)
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose organic flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
  • Kosher salt, to taste (If your cheese is very salty, you may not need to add salt)
  • freshly ground white or black pepper, to taste

TOPPING

  • 1 1/4  cup panko or other dry bread crumbs
  • 1/2 cup shredded Pecorino Romano or Parmesan
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a 9 x 13 inch baking dish by greasing with an olive oil spray or other oil.
  2. Fill a large pot with water and a generous amount (a couple tablespoons) of salt, and place on high heat to boil for the pasta. Once the water is boiling, add the pasta/macaroni.  Boil the pasta a couple minutes less than the package directs, so the pasta is just short of al dente. Drain pasta and rinse with cold water.
  3. While water is coming to a boil, grate the cheeses if you haven’t already. Then make your Béchamel sauce. Heat the milk in a medium sized saucepan. In a large saucepan melt the butter and whisk in the flour. Keep whisking and cook over medium heat for a few minutes, until the mixture bubbles, thickens a bit, and turns a bit darker golden shade. Gradually add the warm milk, whisking constantly. Continue whisking slowly until the sauce thickens a bit and bubbles begin to appear. Then continue whisking while cooking another couple minutes until the sauce thickens a bit more. Add cayenne if desired. Add the shredded cheeses gradually, mixing with a wooden spoon or spatula.Taste and add salt and/or pepper if desired.
  4. Add the drained and rinsed pasta to the cheese sauce and mix well.
  5. Pour the pasta and sauce into the prepared baking dish.
  6. Mix the panko or bread crumbs with melted butter, paprika, and Parmesan or additional Pecorino-Romano. Sprinkle topping evenly over the pasta.
  7. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the crumbs are golden brown and the sauce is bubbling up through the topping.