Macaroni and Cheese: A New Experience Each Time

Hey! It’s Oreo posting for one last time to tell you about the absolute BEST Macaroni and Cheese you will ever consume.

My love for Mac and Cheese started as any child’s would, my mom made it for me. It was a dinner my mom made for me any time I refused to eat the “adult” food she made for herself and my dad. Well, as I grew up Macaroni and Cheese became a standard, not every day but I would request it every couple weeks or so.

One day, when I was about eleven my eight-year-old sister and I decided that we were going to experiment and make our own food for dinner. Our dad was still at work and mom was busy in the other room so we got out about six different types of noodles (oodles of noodles!) and started to boil a giant stock pot of water. Before the water was even warm, we dumped in all the pasta noodles: Spaghetti, Rigatoni, Farfalle, Elbow Macaroni, Risotto, and some sort of big tube shaped pasta. Not knowing any better, we dumped it all in the pot before the water was even gone. About half an hour later, we drained it and set it aside. We still didn’t have a plan and were just trying to make it up as we went. I got out another big pot and filled it half way up with milk. We boiled it, again not knowing how to properly cook, and added cups upon cups of shredded cheese to try to make it thick and melty. That was before I knew any fancy stuff like how to make a roux. We were about to add cream cheese when my mom burst through the double doors into the kitchen and exclaimed one word in such a tone we knew we were in trouble, “GIRLS!” We dropped what we were doing and looked up. “We were trying to make dinner,” we explained weakly. Luckily, chef mom saved the day. She took our melty cheese concoction and added some spices. Together, we lifted the heavy mess of noodles and poured it in. It took about four baking dishes, and we had Macaroni coming out of our ears for weeks. But hey, it turned out pretty good for two little girls with not much experience.

My most recent, and best experience with Macaroni and Cheese is this recipe I made for baked mac and cheese for my final project with sharp white cheddar and pecorino Romano cheese. I started making it one night, until I realized I didn’t have half the ingredients. By the time I got back from the grocery store it was too late to start cooking, we just had to eat leftovers and I made it as a lunch dish the next day.

For my Baked Macaroni and Cheese, I started off getting everything out for my Mise en Place and then prepping my ingredients.

Preheating the over to 375, the oven light is on to remind me!

Mise en place, I'm ready to start cooking!

Preping the number 1 ingredient, grating cheese.

Heating the milk for the Cheese Mixture

After the butter bubbles, adding in the flour for the roux.

Cooking the butter and flour to prep the roux.

Whisking the roux.

Adding in the seasonings and cheese to make the cheese mixture.

Boiling the water for noodles.

Adding the elbow macaroni noodles into the boiling water.

Transfering the macaroni into a colander.

Pouring the pasta mixture into the baking dish.

 

After adding the bread on top, it is all ready to go!

 

Putting my creation in the oven.

 

Baking at 375 degrees for 30 minutes...or a little more!

All done, baked and cooling to be ready to eat for lunch!

As you can probably tell, this time making mac and cheese was probably my most successful. I got to use all my new kitchen skills and eat what I made as well! For anyone who wants to try the recipe themselves, I have it listed below. I wish you happy cooking (and eating!) and this is Oreo, signing out.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 12 (You can easily divide this recipe in half; use a 1 1/2-quart casserole dish if you do.)

Ingredients:

6 slices good-quality white bread, crusts removed, torn into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for dish
5 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar
2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated Gruyere (can substitute Swiss) or 1 1/4 cups (about 5 ounces) grated pecorino Romano
1 pound elbow macaroni

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place bread pieces in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour butter into the bowl with bread, and toss. Set the breadcrumbs aside. In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, heat milk. Melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.

2. Slowly pour hot milk into flour-butter mixture while whisking. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick.

3. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyere or 1 cup pecorino Romano. Set cheese sauce aside.

4. Fill a large saucepan with water. Bring to a boil. Add macaroni; cook 2 to 3 fewer minutes than manufacturer’s directions, until outside of pasta is cooked and inside is underdone. (Different brands of macaroni cook at different rates; be sure to read the instructions.) Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Stir macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.

5. Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar and 1/2 cup Gruyere or 1/4 cup pecorino Romano; scatter breadcrumbs over the top. Bake until browned on top, about 30 minutes. Transfer dish to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes; serve.

Roast the chicken. Not your hand.

IceboxIsaac here for the big finale.

I write this with an aching hand. The stabbing pain comes from the steaming grease that protruded from the pan while frying the chicken. It bubbled right from the surface onto my thumb and pointer finger. But here’s the deal. It’s worth it. This chicken pasta dish is AMAZING.

My mother is hardcore Italian. 100%. She comes from a long line of thorough-bred Italian chefs and cooks. So for me, pasta is tradition. Any kind of sauce is tradition. But this recipe is a little different.With the mayonnaise and the lemon juice, the sauce is creamy, zingy, and delicious. My entire family divulged themselves upon this dish…and I ended up making so much we brought some to my grandpa…and there is still a huge white bowl of it in the fridge!

Roast Chicken Artichoke Pasta

Ingredients:

• 1 lb roast chicken, chopped
• 24 oz. artichoke hearts, cooked, drained, quartered
• 1 lb penne pasta, cooked and drained
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 8 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
• 2 cups Parmesan, grated (to taste)
• 1.5 cups, mayonnaise (to taste)
• 1/2 cup lemon juice (to taste)
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:

1. In a large sauté pan heat olive oil on high heat.
2. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant. Add the drained penne and sauté for a few minutes.
3. When the pasta is well-coated, toss in the chicken and artichokes and stir until thoroughly heated. Remove pot from heat.
4. Toss in the Parmesan, mayonnaise, lemon juice, and parsley. Stir well and serve hot.

Whereas this is the final post for my brethren, I get to stick around for another trimester (maniacal laughter ensues). So this will not be the last you will hear from me. Until next time, recipe minions.

IceboxIsaac signing out.

Ode to the Mac & Cheese

Hey it Dr. Pepper,

“Oh good ol’ mac and cheese what would we do without thee. Thine carbs are plentiful, and thine cheese is a taste I shall never forget. Many times have I held thee in my fork, and tastes the wondrous flavor thou hast provided me time after time. Oh great American staple you are, for many have gazed upon your noble continence, and smelled thine earthy aroma. Great mac and cheese I will never forget thee as long as I live, and I shall mourn till the next time we meet again. Oh great mac and cheese.”-(Darius Knott) As you can see, macaroni and cheese is a dish which many people across the country enjoy (some enough to write an ode). My family in particular is especially fond of the dish and we eat all different variations. From three cheese mac, to the microwavable kind when we’re in a pinch, we just like the stuff. This especially is true for my little brother Tim, who is the number one pasta eater in our house and will eat anything with pasta in it. He was extra excited when I told him I was going to be making Baked Macaroni and Cheese. My whole family loved it, especially Tim, and finished the whole dish in two days. Now I’m going to teach you how to make it.

1. Heat your oven to 375 degrees and butter a 3 quart casserole dish.

2. Place bread pieces in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour butter into the bowl with bread, and toss. Set the breadcrumbs aside. In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, heat milk. Melt the last 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour.  Stir 1 minute.

3. Slowly pour hot milk into flour-butter mixture while whisking. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick.

4. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyere or 1 cup pecorino Romano. Set the cheese sauce aside.

5. Fill a large saucepan with water. Bring to a boil. Add macaroni; cook 2 to 3 fewer minutes than manufacturer’s directions, until outside of pasta is cooked and inside is underdone.  Transfer the macaroni to a colander and rinse under cold running water, and drain well.

6.  Stir macaroni into the  cheese sauce.

7. Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar and 1/2 cup Gruyere or 1/4 cup pecorino Romano; scatter breadcrumbs over the top. Bake until browned on top, about 30 minutes. Transfer dish to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes and serve!!!!!

 

Broil

1/2 of the insane amount of beef

What’s up this is Wheat Bread with my final blog post.  For the first time I made a meal for my entire family and a friend, who I made take pictures.  My nerves were building the on my way back from Carolina Cones and I was starting to question my abilities but once I was in the kitchen I knew that it was on.  I started to walk around the kitchen looking for the necessary cooking supplies and realized that I knew the Woodlawn kitchen better than my own.  After I got my Mis-en-Place set and ready to rock I got to work first with the steaks and then to the asparagus.  I knew that the searing was going to be kind of lame because the steaks were super heavy and my arms super small but I muscled through and successfully flipped the steaks a total of four times each, I woke up the next morning sore but not everyone needs to know that.  I seared the steaks with both butter and olive oil and dang it smelled good.  But that freaking skillet made that oil pop and I will say it was hot!!

Flavor Yum

and the steak seasoning really got into the steak.  The steaks made their trek to the oven were they got finished off.  I went with 7 minutes on each side so they would be medium rare, the only way I know to have steak.  While the steaks were on their last side I started on the asparagus which was very simple to make.

Optimizing the space on the pan

It was olive oil Salt and pepper but it ended up being delicious.  They key is to really message the salt into the veggies.  I also found success once it was done in putting more salt on after the cooking just for some more flavor.

The Final Product

How to Broil Steak

Ingredients:
Steaks (Porterhouse or T-bone, about 1-inch thick)

1 ounce of goat cheese per steak

about 1 tablespoon of butter per steak

1 teaspoon of olive oil per steak

1. Allow the steaks (Porterhouse, ribeye, etc.) to rest on a plate on the counter for about 15 minutes before cooking. Rinse the meat under cool running water. Pat dry on both sides with several layers of paper towels.

1. Place the empty broiler pan under the broiler. Turn the boiler on the high setting to pre-heat for 10 minutes.

1. Season the steaks on both sides. Keep in mind that salt draws moisture from the meat, so use pepper, garlic or onion powder or specially prepared steak seasoning blends.

1. Sear the steaks in a stove-stop skillet to seal in the juices. Add a pat of butter and teaspoon of olive oil to a hot skillet. Set the steaks in the pan undisturbed for 60 to 90 seconds on each side.

1. Remove the hot boiler pan from the oven. Place the prepared steaks side by side in the center of the pan. Position the steaks about 3 inches from the broiler flame or element.

1. Broil the steaks until the desire doneness is reached. Cook thick steaks for 3 to 4 minutes on a side for rare, 5 to 6 minutes for medium rare and so forth. During the last minute of cooking, sprinkle goat cheese onto steak and leave it under broiler, watching carefully.  Remove when it’s melty and toasted.

1. Adjust cooking times to get the desired results. Consider the thickness of the meat and whether it’s pan seared. Let the finished steaks rest for 5 minutes before serving to allow the juices to redistribute.

Roasted Asparagus

Ingredients:

2 bunches medium asparagus

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Grated or shaved Parmesan, optional

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Trim the woody ends from the asparagus, usually about 1 1/2 inches. Lightly peel the remaining stalks (not always necessary, but more of a personal preference). Spread the spears in a single layer on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with the salt and pepper, and roll to coat thoroughly.

Roast the asparagus until lightly browned and tender, about 8 to 10 minutes, giving the pan a good shake about halfway through to turn the asparagus. Arrange the roasted asparagus on a serving platter and top with some Parmesan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

I Knead a Dream

 

IceBoxIsaac reporting for duty.

My life.

Currently my life revolves around a certain ‘task’ that can truly turn a smile to a frown or a song into a scream…waiting. All I do is wait. This past weekend I (finally) finished the last of my college auditions and now all that’s left are the answers. I would like to tell you an intriguing story from my life that somehow connects to the recipe I am blogging about…but alack my life lacks the kerfuffle necessary to write such an epic. I wake up. I school. I drive home. And then I sprint to the mailbox to see what destinies await me that day; to see what dreams have been uplifted…or otherwise crushed by the solemn postal worker who, unfortunately, is merely the messenger of said news. I have been accepted to a few schools…but I have been denied by even more. When I open a letter and it merely says ‘no’ I want to cry. I want to bash in the head of that mailman and tell him to take the envelope back to whatever sadistic dean denied my behind. But I refrain. I always refrain. I keep it classy.

My dreams are lumps of dough. (I’m tying it in, I swear…I’ll come back to this.)
CHEESY DROP BISCUITS WITH GARLIC BUTTER

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of original Bisquick
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• apple butter (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a medium bowl mix Bisquick and shredded cheese together. Add milk. Stir with fork until dough (soft) forms.
2. On a cookie sheet, drop dough by 5 to 6 spoonfuls about 2 inches apart. I like to used parchment paper to line the baking sheet. If you do not use the paper I would lightly grease the baking sheet because the cheese will cause the biscuits to stick.
3. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.
4. In small bowl, stir the butter and garlic powder until well mixed: brush on half of warm biscuits before removing from cookie sheet.
5. Serve warm. Half with garlic butter and half with the apple butter. So delicious.

In conclusion: My dreams are like a bowl of dough. I have to spoon them out one by one and hopefully (with a little heat) they will grow and develop and rise to the occasion. That’s all you can hope for, really. Life is full of delicious possibilities.

IceBoxIsaac signing out.

Pasta and Goodbye

Hello it is crazy cooking Joe here and as the title suggests this is my final post for this cooking class, so I guarantee it will be entertaining. Not like anything before this wasn’t entertaining; its just this one will be more entertaining. Because there is more to talk about. . .

Well for this week I made a very simple and delicious roast chicken artichoke pasta; trust me the name is more complicated than the actual dish, but again more on that later. As for now I would like to share a little story as to what happened to while I was making this dish.

As the title implies there is roast chicken in the recipe and in order to roast a chicken all you do is take a chicken breast, rub it down in a little bit of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, place skin side down in a pan for roughly three minutes so you can sear the chicken, then you place the chicken skin side up on a baking pan in the oven for approximately 15 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken is 160 -165 degrees. And if you recall there was a post about how to roast chicken earlier this year. But, I had some issues when I made my roasted chicken this time around. You see I put a tad bit to much oil on the chicken and when I put the chicken in the oven there was still to much oil. So if you know where this is going then hooray for you, but if you don’t what happened was the oil I guess evaporated and so when I opened the oven to check the temperature of my chicken a massive cloud of smoke erupted from my oven as though it was a volcano. So the first thing that happens is my smoke alarm goes off and the entire time I’m dealing with my chicken problem the smoke alarm is going off, so I deal with my chicken issue and under parental advisement I wrapped the chicken in the tinfoil to reduce the cooking of the remaining oil. Which helped somewhat, because when I opened the chicken for the second time a much smaller cloud of smoke came out of my oven, but somehow still managed to set off my smoke alarm. So that was fun times and whatnot, but interestingly enough when I tried the chicken, because I tried the chicken before I put it in the pasta it tasted perfectly fine and in fact it I think it tasted better than I remember, but before I continue this doesn’t mean that you should create a giant cloud of smoke in your oven when cooking you chicken. Because that would be bad. Before I continue I do want to add a quick note that when I looked at the oven before I opened for the first time it looked perfectly fine and I had no reason to believe tat anything would go awry when I opened it; I feel I should clarify this after my previous statement.

The cooking of the chicken 

Now that, that my story is out of the way there is no reason to not share this recipe with you. So here you go . . .

Roast Chicken Artichoke Pasta

For this recipe you will need the ingredients that are listed, a pot for the boiling of the pasta, a baking pan and some tinfoil for the roasting of the chicken, a wooden spoon to stir the pasta, some sort of pot or pan to saute (I used a dutch oven for this, because I was short on some pans at the time), possibly a bowl to present your final product in (its really your call, I just mixed all of the ingredients in the dutch oven and left it in there until I had to pack up the leftovers. It keeps it nice and hot and that reminds me about something; this recipe makes quite a bit of food so don’t be afraid to halve the recipe). Also it is important to note that this recipe took me about and hour or so to make.

The ingredients

1 pound of roast chicken

A 24oz. container of artichoke hearts, cooked, drained, quartered (I only used a 10 oz. container, because that was all that I had in my house at the time and in my opinion I didn’t think there was a huge different in taste. I believe you could taste the artichokes all the same, but in reality it is your choice )

1 pound of penne pasta, cooked and drained

3 tablespoons olive oil

8 cloves of crushed or minced garlic

2 cups of Parmesan cheese, grated (this part is said to be done to taste; I ended up putting in about a cup and a half,because like before it was what I had in my house)

1 and a half cups mayonnaise (to taste)

A half a cup lemon juice (to taste; on a side not I used freshly squeezed lemon juice, but it shouldn’t make a difference if you do it from a container)

Me, squeezing some lemons

A half a cup of freshly chopped parsley

All my ingredients, minus some pasta and chicken

Now what your going to want to do is make your roast chicken, I wrote this in the before part and I believe someone did a post about it earlier this year with the recipe if you would like to double check *This is what you need the tinfoil, the baking sheet, and what else.

Me, searing some chicken

My completed chicken

Now to start the rest of it; in a large saute pan heat olive oil on high heat. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add the drained penne and saute for a few minutes. When the pasta is well-coated, toss in the chicken and artichokes and stir until thoroughly heated. Remove pot from the heat. Toss in the Parmesan mayonnaise, lemon juice, and parsley. Stir well and serve hot.

Picture time!

My pasta, in the pot

The complete and ultimate dish

That’s all for me; goodbye people, it was fun while it lasted.

But, don’t forget, enjoy.