I just wanted to wish everyone a wonderful holiday, no matter what you celebrate! Thank you to all that follow and read this blog, you guys are seriously awesome!
This year, my fiance and I did a small get together with his family last night and then we drove around looking at Christmas lights. Our goal was to find the tackiest decorated house possible (and we found quite a few!)
Every year, I’m also asked to make my baked mac and cheese. I thought it would be cool to share that recipe with the rest of you guys! You can find it after the jump and I hope you have a most wonderful holiday!
Baked Mac & Cheese
Ingredients:
3 lbs cheese. I use Gouda, Extra Sharp Chedder, and Provolone. Do whatever floats your boat though.
.5 lb Bacon
1 lb Pasta. Shells are probably best, but wing it with whatever
Milk
Flour
Salt
Pepper
Ground Mustard
Garlic Powder
Panko Bread Crumbs. Regular would work, but panko is love.
What you do:
Fry off that bacon. Start the bacon in a cold pan so you get a ton of bacon fat. Once the bacon is cooked, pull it out and let it drain on paper towel. Save the fat.
Shred your cheese. Mix the 2 white cheeses and half the chedder in a bowl. Save the rest of the chedder.
Now, cook your pasta. I do the cold water method where you put all the pasta in a pot, cover it with cold water, stick on a burner until it boils. Then cover it, turn it down to a simmer and let it cook for 4 minutes. It’s faster and works.
Start pre-heating your oven. 350F works. Now start your roux.
Take the bacon fat and get it melted down again (if it solidified) and whisk in some flour. Whisk it around until it starts to get a nutty color. Now, slowly pour in milk while whisking. If you can’t do it, find someone that’s just lounging around and put them to work whisking. Once you get about as much sauce as you want, dump the mixed cheeses in and stir/whisk until smooth. Once it’s smooth, add salt, pepper, ground mustard, and garlic powder to taste. If you don’t like any of those, just skip it.
Now, drain your pasta (it should be done by now) and pour it into a giant mixing bowl. Pour your hot cheese sauce into that bowl. Stir gently to coat all the pasta. Now, fold in the rest of the cheddar and the bacon pieces.
Pour it all into a casserole dish, top with bread crumbs and pop in the oven for about 15 minutes. If you want to broil the top, go for it.
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