Not your Grandma's Macaroni and Cheese.

Or perhaps it is.  The inspiration for my version of Mac n’ Cheese does, in fact, originate with my grandmother.  Although she never actually made it for me, my dad improved upon her recipe and fed it to us over the years.  I have since made changes of my own, until getting to where it is now.  Perfection.  That’s right, I said perfection, and I’m standing by that.  This isn’t made with a cheese sauce or topped with bread crumbs, it’s not the mushy gloop you might find at the deli or on a buffet, and it certainly isn’t that neon orange Krap from a box.  It’s hot, bubbly, cheesy, bacony goodness, like you’ve never experienced before. 

What you’ll need:

1 ¼ cups each, of 3 different kinds of cheese*

½ pound bacon*

1 pound macaroni

4 or 5 green onions

1 ½ cups milk

Liberal amounts of salt and pepper

 

*Ingredient notes:  Use good quality cheese.  Don’t buy the pre-grated stuff.  Grate your own.  For a commercial brand, I like Tillamook, but I also like to buy local and imported cheese from the cheese monger.  You can get pretty good stuff from the cheese counter at most grocery stores these days.    

As for the bacon, use one that’s just a regular slice.  The thickly sliced stuff isn’t the best in this dish.  Also, I am very passionate about the treatment (or mistreatment) of pigs, so please buy bacon that comes from humanely raised pigs if you can.  Niman Ranch and Beelers are a couple of good examples. 

Onto the actual cooking.  I like to cook bacon in the oven.  It’s easy to make, and easy cleanup.  Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil and lay out your bacon slices.  That way, when it’s all done, and the bacon grease solidifies, you can just take the foil off and throw the whole thing away.  Slide the pan into a cold oven and then turn it to 350°.  If your husband is around, you might want to make two pans so that you'll still have enough after he's finished snitching.   

Now is a good time to chop your green onions and grate the cheese.  The combination of cheeses I used was Colby Jack, Extra Sharp Cheddar, and an Apple Walnut Smoked Cheddar. 

Ok, back to the bacon.  The thickness of the slices can really affect the time it will take to cook.  After it’s been in for about 12 to 15 minutes, start to check on it.  You might even want to flip the slices over.  To me, bacon is not cooked until it’s crisp, so it should look about like this:

 

Move it to some paper towels to drain.  For the pasta, fill a pan with plenty of salted water, and bring it to a boil.  Follow the package directions, but make sure the pasta is al dente.  It’s going to cook some more in the oven, so you don’t want it too soft now.  Drain the macaroni and rinse it with cold water.  After allowing the excess water to drain off, pour the noodles into your casserole dish, drizzle with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and stir to coat.

Now, let’s chop our bacon.

 

If your oven is not already preheated to 350° from cooking the bacon, do so now.  On top of the macaroni, sprinkle salt and freshly cracked pepper.  Reserving about ¼ cup of each of the cheeses, spread the rest on top, mixing them together as you do so.  Set aside a couple tablespoons each of the bacon and green onions, and throw the rest into the pot. 

 

Now stir it all together until everything is evenly distributed.  Drizzle the milk over the top, covering as much area as you can. 

 

Top with the remaining cheese and press the mixture softly into the pan with your hand. 

At this point, you want to cover the pan, but some steam needs to escape as well.  My dish has a lid, so I like to fold up a piece of foil to place under it, which creates a bit of a crack. 

 

If you’re covering your dish with foil, just poke a few little holes in it after you’ve got it in place.  Bake for about 45 minutes, or until it looks like this:

 

When you put a spoon down the inside of the pan to the bottom, there should be very little or no liquid down there.  That’s how you’ll know it’s done.  If there is still liquid down there, simply remove the cover and bake for a few more minutes. 

Allow to rest for a good ten minutes before serving.  It’ll be the hardest thing you’ve ever had to do, but it really is worth it. 

Garnish each portion with a sprinkling of the remaining bacon and green onions and serve with your favorite vegetable.  You’ve got to have something nutritious on the plate, right?  I went for roasted asparagus. 

 

If you have leftovers, freeze them in individual servings, and you’ll never have to feed your kids (or yourself) that artificially flavored and colored stuff again. 

Have a macaroni and cheese recipe you think can outdo mine?  Without posting the whole recipe, tell me what's special about yours and why I should try it.  The one that interests me most, I'll make and feature here on our blog.      

Meatball Sandwiches

So, I was originally going to post a recipe for enchiladas (well, my version of them), but since it’s Super Bowl weekend, I figured meatball sandwiches were more fitting.  I mean, what guy wouldn’t like to bite into a delicious meatball sub, while watching the big game?  Or what woman, for that matter?  These really are simple, and you can easily adjust the recipe for as many or as few as you want. 

First, we’ll start with the meat.  I used one pound of lean ground beef.  I always use organic beef.  I know it costs more, but if you haven’t tried it, you should.  The taste, in my opinion, is so much better, and if you put lots of onions and stuff in it, it brings the price down. 

Anyway, back to cooking.  When making a meat mixture, I like to use my stand mixer.  You could, of course do it by hand, but I’m lazy like that.  Throw the meat into your mixing bowl with an egg.  And mix on low speed until completely combined.

 

Dice a medium onion, half of a bell pepper, and 3 or 4 cloves of garlic and throw them all in the bowl.  Mix on low speed just until evenly distributed.  You don’t want to smash things up too much. 

For making the meatballs, I like to use a cookie scoop.  It’s easier to get them roundish, and they’re all pretty much the same size.  Don’t fret if they’re not perfect.  They’ll taste fabulous, regardless of what they look like. 

Once you’ve turned the entire meat mixture into balls (yes, I realize that somewhere in this post, I am inevitably going to say something that sounds dirty), slide the whole group of them into a hot pan that’s been coated with 2 or 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil. 

Sear the meatballs on at least 2 sides.  Don’t skip this step, it is important for overall flavor and for helping the balls stay together.

Once the balls are nicely browned (oh boy), open a jar of homemade marinara. 

You do have homemade marinara, right?  No?  Ok, since we haven’t covered how to do that yet, store bought will have to do.  Open a pint jar of whatever your favorite is, and pour it over the meatballs.  Stir gently.  We want to try to keep the balls intact as much as possible.

   Cover and simmer for a good 45 minutes or so, stirring occasionally to keep the sauce from sticking or burning. 

After that time, they should look something like this…

Are you drooling yet?  The next step is slicing the buns.  My local grocery store makes FABULOUS ciabatta rolls.  You’re bound to see me using them repeatedly on here.  If you can find a bun that is a little crust, a little chewy, but soft with big air pockets on the inside, you’re on the right track.  Spoon enough meatballs onto the bread to cover most of the surface, but not so many they’re just going to fall out as soon as you pick it up.  Top with a slice of provolone or mozzarella and the top bun.  The heat from the mixture will soften the bread and melt the cheese. 

You may find them easier to eat if they’re cut in half, or if you want them to be more of an appetizer or hors d'oeuvre for the game, you could put a single meatball on a small roll and that would work just fine. 

Enjoy the meal and the game!  Go… oh, who am I kidding, I don’t even know who’s playing in the Super Bowl.