Fancy Macaroni and Cheese

Fancy Macaroni and Cheese

Recipe adapted from E

When we were dating, J mentioned that his love language includes cheese, bread, and ice cream.  He also has a love for pasta and Macaroni and Cheese, so I like to try different recipes to find a sure winner.  This one is delicious and we (read: I) was glad that we were providing food for two dinner parties so that we would not have lots of leftovers.

Topping:  Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle. Melt butter, then stir together with smashed garlic, breadcrumbs and topping cheeses in a bowl until combined well.


Sauce:  Melt butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat and stir in flour. Cook roux, stirring, 3 minutes, then whisk in milk. Bring sauce to a boil, whisking constantly, then simmer, whisking occasionally, 3 minutes. I pre-combined the cheeses, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper (white pepper works well here) and stirred in until smooth. Remove from heat and cover surface of sauce with wax paper.

Make Pasta:  Cook bow ties in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 4 quarts water) until al dente. Reserve 1 cup cooking water and drain macaroni in a colander. Stir together macaroni, reserved cooking water, and sauce in a large bowl. Transfer to 2 buttered 2-quart shallow baking dishes.

Sprinkle topping evenly over macaroni and bake until golden and bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes.

For topping

1/2 stick unsalted butter
3 cups coarse fresh bread crumbs (from 6 slices firm wheat sandwich bread) (or 2 cups panko (coarse Japanese bread crumbs)
4 smashed cloves of garlic (optional)
1/4 pound coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar (1 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup grated Parmesean

For pasta and sauce

1 stick unsalted butter
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 cups milk (I used 1%, but original recipe called for whole.  1% was plenty creamy)
1 pound coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar (6 cups)
1/2 cup grated Parmesean
1 pound bowtie pasta

Enjoy!