I feel that I am not alone when I say some days I miss the comforts of home. One of the ways I bring that comfort to my small upper west side apartment is by cooking. I wasn't always comfortable in the kitchen. My cooking skills didn't go past french toast and grilled cheese. But it's true that practice makes perfect and the latest experiment of mine has been homemade macaroni and cheese. Following one of my favorite blogs, I came across this recipe. I thought it was a perfect way to wrap up a long day and make up some time in the kitchen. While I was making this for a special dinner guest, I wish he had been there to help. There were many things happening at once and it would have been good to have another set of hands to grate cheese and check the boiling pasta and milk. Either way I believe it turned out well. Next time I would like to make more of the béchamel sauce for a cheesier dish. Make sure you are paying attention when constructing this masterpiece because if you over cook your pasta, burn your milk or get too carried away with the béchamel, you'll have to start over. Recipe below and enjoy!
delish mac-n-cheese
Ingredients
1 lb pasta (your noodle of choice)
1 1/2 cups pancetta
2 cups béchamel (see recipe below)
1 1/2 cups cheese (I used a 1/2 cup of each - grated Asiago cheese, smoked gouda and cheddar)
1/2 cup of panko crumbs
Preheat oven to 375F. Grease 2-quart casserole dish. I used a bread pan for a smaller batch. Cook pasta according to directions but al dente (do not overcook!). Drain pasta and set aside. Prepare meat by dicing pancetta into tiny cubes; then sauté in a separate pan until slightly crispy.
Make a medium thick béchamel sauce (see separate recipe below). Gradually add the three cheeses to the béchamel, stirring until melted. Stir in the cooked pancetta. Stir the (cheesy-pancetta-béchamel) mixture into the cooked pasta. Pour the (pasta and cheesy-pancetta-Béchamel) mixture into the casserole dish.
Sprinkle the Panko crumbs on top of the pasta mixture. Cook in the oven, uncovered, for 25 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.
Recipe for béchamel:
2 cups milk
4 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Put the milk in a saucepan,turn on the heat to medium low, and bring the milk just to the verge of boiling.
While heating the milk, put the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and turn the heat to low. When the butter has melted completely, add all the flour, stirring it in with a wooden spoon. Cook, while stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes. Do not allow the flour to become colored. Remove from heat.
Add the hot milk to the flour-and-butter mixture, no more than 2 tablespoons of milk at a time. This seems a bit excessive but makes all the difference. Take your time for a perfect sauce. Stir steadily and thoroughly. As soon as the first 2 tablespoons of milk have been incorporated into the mixture, add 2 more and continue to stir. Repeat this procedure until you have added 1/3 cup milk; you can now put in the rest of the milk 1/2 cup at a time; stirring constantly, until all the milk has been smoothly combined with the flour and butter.
Place the pan over low heat, add the salt, and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is as dense as thick cream.
1 lb pasta (your noodle of choice)
1 1/2 cups pancetta
2 cups béchamel (see recipe below)
1 1/2 cups cheese (I used a 1/2 cup of each - grated Asiago cheese, smoked gouda and cheddar)
1/2 cup of panko crumbs
Preheat oven to 375F. Grease 2-quart casserole dish. I used a bread pan for a smaller batch. Cook pasta according to directions but al dente (do not overcook!). Drain pasta and set aside. Prepare meat by dicing pancetta into tiny cubes; then sauté in a separate pan until slightly crispy.
Make a medium thick béchamel sauce (see separate recipe below). Gradually add the three cheeses to the béchamel, stirring until melted. Stir in the cooked pancetta. Stir the (cheesy-pancetta-béchamel) mixture into the cooked pasta. Pour the (pasta and cheesy-pancetta-Béchamel) mixture into the casserole dish.
Sprinkle the Panko crumbs on top of the pasta mixture. Cook in the oven, uncovered, for 25 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.
Recipe for béchamel:
2 cups milk
4 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Put the milk in a saucepan,turn on the heat to medium low, and bring the milk just to the verge of boiling.
While heating the milk, put the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and turn the heat to low. When the butter has melted completely, add all the flour, stirring it in with a wooden spoon. Cook, while stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes. Do not allow the flour to become colored. Remove from heat.
Add the hot milk to the flour-and-butter mixture, no more than 2 tablespoons of milk at a time. This seems a bit excessive but makes all the difference. Take your time for a perfect sauce. Stir steadily and thoroughly. As soon as the first 2 tablespoons of milk have been incorporated into the mixture, add 2 more and continue to stir. Repeat this procedure until you have added 1/3 cup milk; you can now put in the rest of the milk 1/2 cup at a time; stirring constantly, until all the milk has been smoothly combined with the flour and butter.
Place the pan over low heat, add the salt, and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is as dense as thick cream.
