Nan's Mac & Cheese
My sister and I seem to be on an endless quest for the "perfect" mac & cheese. Thought our search had ended one night when we devoured some her son had made only to find out he "just threw it together" and couldn't even tell us what cheeses he'd used. They were "whatever I had in my fridge." He's never duplicated it. So this is my attempt.
Nan's Mac & Cheese
My sister and I seem to be on an endless quest for the "perfect" mac & cheese. Thought our search had ended one night when we devoured some her son had made only to find out he "just threw it together" and couldn't even tell us what cheeses he'd used. They were "whatever I had in my fridge." He's never duplicated it. So this is my attempt.
Cooking Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F. and butter the bottom and sides of a 9"×13" baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- 2
In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and whisk in the flour. Cook, stirring for about 4 minutes, until blond in color. Gradually whisk in the milk. Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring the sauce to simmer, whisking frequently. Lower the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 5 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken. Stir in the mustard.
- 3
Reduce heat to low. Stir in the mascarpone cheese until melted. A handfulat a time, stir in the goat cheese, cheddar and Manchego cheese until everything is melted and smooth. Stir in the seasonings.
- 4
When the pot of salted water has reached full boil, stir in the pasta. Cook, stirring occasionally, until barely al dente, about 5 minutes (will fully cook when baking). Before you drain the pasta, reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water and whisk it into the sauce. Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper as needed. Remove from heat.
- 5
Add the drained pasta to the sauce and stir to combine well. Spoon into the baking dish. It will be quite saucy, but much will absorb into the pasta as it finishes cooking in the oven. Bake in 350°F oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven. Increase oven temperature to 400°F.
- 6
Mix together the TOPPING INGREDIENTS well so the butter coats everything. Sprinkle evenly over the top of the mac & cheese. Bake 10-15 minutes more to brown and crisp the top. Let sit at least 10 minutes before serving. In our house it's not mac & cheese without the crunchy panko topping!
- 7
Disclosure: This was really good, but it's still not the "OMG!!" we're looking for. I welcome your suggestions to help us reach mac & cheese perfection.
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