I readied my ingredients ( my mise en place, if you will)--evaporated milk, cheddar cheese, beaten eggs, dry mustard dissolved in hot water, salt, and ground red pepper. Since they are all added at once, I really recommend getting everything prepped ahead of time--shredding all that cheese takes a surprisingly long time.
All of those ingredients are mixed into the pasta and it's cooked until the sauce is smooth. This took forever--I was afraid the cheese was never going to melt. A finer shred of cheese would probably be helpful because it would melt a lot faster.
After stirring for what seemed like hours, the cheese melted.
It was good! Easy (not quite as easy as Kraft but without the creepy fluroscent orange color) and with a sharp, authenic sharp cheddar tang. Creamy! I would definately make it again although I would probably test out other cheese combinations.
I'm posting multiple blogs today so make sure to check!
A good story
ReplyDeleteGK Chesterton: “The poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese.”
Voila: www.tastingtoeternity.com. This book is a poetic view of 30 of the best loved French cheeses with an additional two odes to cheese. Recipes, wine pairing, three short stories and an educational section complete the book.
From a hectic life in New York City to the peace and glories of the French countryside lead me to be the co-founder of www.fromages.com. Ten years later with the words of Pierre Androuet hammering on my brain:
“Cheese is the soul of the soil. It is the purest and most romantic link between humans and the earth.”
I took pen and paper; many reams later with the midnight oil burning Tasting to Eternity was born and self published.
I believe cheese and wine lovers should be told about this publication.
Enjoy
I found this post because I googled JOC mac and cheese stovetop recipe - it's my favorite and I'm just craving some (but, alas, out of cheddar and the grocery stores here are closed for the night). I've made this a zillion times and it's by far my favorite way to eat it.
ReplyDeleteIt does take a while to shred the cheddar but I've never had to wait more than a minute or two for it to melt. I use my skillet for it actually - very wide base and just barely deep enough. I've sometimes melted the cheese before adding the noodles, which perhaps makes it faster, but I've also done it the *official* way too, no trouble. Perhaps my heat is higher? I also never add all of the ingredients at once - never prepared enough;-) And I always let it cool once the cheese has melted - just a tad - before adding the eggs. I suppose I could try tempering them too, to prevent them from hardening in the sauce. But then, perhaps it isn't necessary.
Warming up leftovers is a cinch too. With a little extra milk (real, not condensed) in a little sauce pan over low-medium heat for a few minutes and a few jostles with a spoon; I savor every bite.
SO tasty!!
Like the previous poster, I found your site looking for this recipe.
ReplyDeleteI think adding the pasta last is the way to go. Much more control, and the macaroni is less likely to get "banged up" during all that mixing.
I usually don't use eggs in my version, but I think tempering is a good idea.
Thank you for these recipes. This site is a real treasure.
I've made this stovetop macaroni before and I had the same issue. It felt like I was stirring for an eternity before it all melted and actually resembled creamy macaroni and cheese. I think JOY was very off in how long they claim this recipe takes. Still yummy though! And I thought the dry mustard gave it a great bite!
ReplyDelete