The Secret of the Mac

Macaroni and cheese may be eaten and made in any variety of ways; some good, some atrocious. I myself mix things up a bit from time to time, and that is all well and good, provided a few simple rules are followed. Let me explain. Some cheeses are flavorful and rich but melt horribly. Others melt great but are rather bland. And some, you just need to avoid all together. But can you have it all? Creamy, cheesy, gooey, and delicious? Yes. Yes you can. Enter in the Cheese Wheel:

Simply pick (at least) one from each section. The amount you use is up to you. But, as you can tell by the wheel, it should be mostly Creamy. I tend to go with the 8,4,2 rule. 8oz. Creamy, 4oz. Flavor, 2 oz. Binder. This all gets added to a thin white sauce. To make this, you melt a half cup butter in a large saucepan (you’ll need room later for all that cheese). Once it’s melted, add a half cup flour and stir until smooth. Cook a bit—about two minutes, stirring the whole time. Add to this five cups dairy. I use half and half, but milk is fine. Just please, whatever you do, don’t go with skim. Stir and cook, cook and stir until it comes to a boil, at which point you add all that lovely cheese. Oh. And don’t forget to add a bit of salt and pepper. You’ll have to taste it to see how much. Some cheeses are saltier than others.

That’s it for the sauce. Now for the noodles. There are many choices. Elbow. Shell. Spaetzle. I’ve used them all. The type doesn’t matter. What does is how much you put in. It is so very tempting to fill that cheesy sauce with lots and lots of pasta. Don’t do it! Nothing ruins a good mac and cheese faster than low sauce to pasta ratio. This is how it’s done in a right and proper way:

While you’re making your sauce, put a pot of well-salted water on to boil. When it is, add your pasta, one ounce per cup of milk you had in your sauce, so for this recipe, you will use five ounces of pasta. Cook until just done. Strain, and stir into your cheese sauce. It will look like soup. You’ll swear I steered you wrong. But trust me.

Before you go and put your mac and cheese in the oven, I feel I must give you two more details. Stir-ins and Toppings:

Stir-in and top any way you like, and now….

Pour the pot into a nine by thirteen baking pan and bake in a three-hundred-and-fifty-degree oven until bubbly. About forty minutes. Eat it straight from the oven, when it’s at its most oohhey gooey.

Don’t know where to start? Here are a few ideas to get you going:

The Basic: Havarti, Extra Sharp Cheddar, and Yellow American—this can be topped with grated cheese, crushed croutons, or crushed potato chips.

Buffalo: Pepper Jack (Monterey), Blue, and White American—mix in a bit of hot sauce and you’re good to go. For extra fun, stir in cooked chicken and top with crumbled blue and diced celery.

Fancy Smancy: Havarti, Asiago, and White American—add a bit of minced garlic to the white sauce when cooking. Shrimp sauteed in butter/garlic is a nice addition. Or Crab. Or Lobster.

Taco: Cream Cheese, Colby, Orange American, one packet taco seasoning, top with crushed corn tortillas

French: Cream Cheese, Goat, White American, chop one apple medium and sauté with the butter while cooking your thin white sauce. Drizzle honey on top when removed from the oven.

Herbed: Havarti, Parmesan, White American. Stir in garlic (saluted in the butter when making the white sauce), fresh rosemary, thyme, and oregano. Top with crushed croutons.