Creamy Macaroni & Cheese

This Macaroni & Cheese recipe is one of the staples at home as it is really creamy without a lot of fat, it is super easy to make on a week night, and this is one of the short list of foods that Ana requests.

Rather than heavy cream and a lot of cheese, this recipe uses canned evaporated milk with a small amount of freshly grated creamy colby jack cheese.

My other mac and cheese recipe is a bit different and is sort of an 'adult' version whereas this is a more kid-friendly version :)

Ingredients
2 cups raw elbow macaroni
1-2 cups canned evaporated milk - use only as much as needed
1 cup grated Colby Jack cheese
1-2 chicken bullion cubes in 3 cups water -or- 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
frozen peas and carrots
salt as needed

Preparation

1. cook the elbow macaroni in the chicken or vegetable broth, or just water, over medium heat, with just enough water, not a huge pot like pasta is usually cooked in - this way, there isn't too much water to drain away and lose all the wholesome broth - as the milk and cheese are simply stirred into the macaroni
2. when macaroni is cooked al dente, add the frozen vegetables, add the grated cheese, then add the canned evaporated milk a little at a time, stirring constantly to get thick creamy texture
3. add enough evaporated milk so the macaroni & cheese is still a little runny as it will congeal on cooling and get lumpy :)

mac and cheese

Mac and Cheese has never been my favorite until I tried the ATK's (America's Test Kitchen) version, with my own little modifications.

I had Mac and Cheese for the first time in my life only around my late teens, my mom never made it, and I didn't really care for it.

This is a nice & easy mid-week dinner as Baby and D love it. And, I like it as this is not out of a box with powdered processed cheese, and it does not have much cheese either. Besides, it takes about 15 minutes to put together (roughly the time it takes pasta to cook).

Ingredients: flour, oil, butter, herbs, salt, milk, low fat cheddar (use the freshly grated chunk of cheddar, the pre-grated ones from the store have additives to keep them from sticking)

Boil your favorite pasta, (i use macaroni or small shells), in salted water and drain, keep handy.

Make a simple roux of sorts with 1 Tbsp oil, 1 Tbsp butter, 2 Tbsp flour: simply melt the butter a bit, add the oil and the flour and sauté till the flour loses the raw smell

Make the cheese sauce with the roux started above: add 1 cup freshly grated low fat cheddar, 1 cup milk, some salt and spices/herbs (I like fresh rosemary or chives from my garden, but, this is optional), bring it to a gentle simmer till cheese melts and the sauce thickens.

Add the cooked pasta a little at a time till the mac-and-cheese acquires the desired thickness. I like the cheese sauce flowing & silky, not runny, and not lumped tight either... picky, picky, I know ;-)

If preferred, pour the pasta-in-cheese-sauce made above into an over-proof dish, top with breadcrumbs and bake in a 350°F oven for about 8-10 minutes.

Serve warm.