{"id":71,"date":"2016-01-27T09:01:00","date_gmt":"2016-01-27T14:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/?p=71"},"modified":"2016-01-27T09:01:00","modified_gmt":"2016-01-27T14:01:00","slug":"the-comfort-of-mac-and-cheese","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/the-comfort-of-mac-and-cheese\/","title":{"rendered":"The comfort of Mac and Cheese!!!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Mac<\/a><\/p>\n

Mary Ellen\u2019s Heart-Melting Mac and Cheese<\/strong><\/p>\n

(modified from Martha Stewart\u2019s recipe)<\/p>\n

This recipe is pure comfort food \u2013 creamy, delicious and totally decadent!!!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for baking pan<\/p>\n

6 slices good white bread (I\u2019ve substituted good dinner rolls when I\u2019ve had some left over) \u2013 slightly toast and cut or tear into \u00bc to \u00bd inch pieces, same as if you were making fresh bread cubes for stuffing<\/p>\n

5 \u00bd cups milk (use whole or 2%)<\/p>\n

\u00bd cup all-purpose flour<\/p>\n

2 tsp salt<\/p>\n

\u00bc tsp freshly grated nutmeg<\/p>\n

\u00bc tsp freshly ground black pepper<\/p>\n

1\/8- \u00bc tsp cayenne pepper (your preference depending on spiciness you like)<\/p>\n

4 \u00bd cups grated sharp white cheddar cheese<\/p>\n

1 \u00bd cups grated Gruy\u00e8re (can substitute Swiss)<\/p>\n

\u00bd cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano (we love Liuzzi\u2019s brand \u2013 fabulous flavor!)<\/p>\n

Note: I also like making this with a blend of cheeses. So sometimes, I just go to my local deli and ask to buy a couple of pounds of their cheese ends. Shred in the food processor until you have 6 cups of cheese. To this, add the \u00bd cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano.<\/p>\n

1 pound elbow macaroni \u2013 I\u2019ve often substituted small or medium shells or Cavatappi<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Preheat oven to 375\u02da. Butter a 9 X 13 baking pan. Place bread chunks\/cubes in a medium bowl. In small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 T butter. Pour melted butter over bread chunks and toss to evenly coat. Set aside.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Cover a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Cook the macaroni until the outside of the pasta is cooked and the inside is underdone, a little less than al dente. Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water and drain well. Set aside.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

       <\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Warm milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Melt remaining butter in a high sided skillet over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

         <\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Using a whisk, add hot milk a little at a time to keep mixture smooth. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until mixture bubbles and thickens, approximately 8-12 minutes.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

           <\/p>\n

            \n
          1. Remove pan from heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, peppers and all cheeses. Set the cheese sauce aside.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

             <\/p>\n

              \n
            1. Stir the macaroni into the cheese sauce.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

               <\/p>\n

                \n
              1. Pour entire mixture into prepared baking dish. If you\u2019d like, you can grate some additional Parmigiano Reggiano over all. Evenly spread buttered bread chunks over the top. Bake until golden, about 45 minutes.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                 <\/p>\n

                Serves 12. Party idea: This is fabulous on a buffet table with a spiral ham!!!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                Mary Ellen\u2019s Heart-Melting Mac and Cheese (modified from Martha Stewart\u2019s recipe) This recipe is pure comfort food \u2013 creamy, delicious and totally decadent!!!   1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for baking pan 6 slices good white bread (I\u2019ve substituted good dinner rolls when I\u2019ve had some left over) \u2013 slightly toast and cut or … Continue reading The comfort of Mac and Cheese!!!<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73,"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71\/revisions\/73"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eagle-inspections.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}