We are going for extra al dente pasta here – the reason is the pasta will continue cooking in the hot cheese sauce and while being baked in the oven for about 20 minutes. This step is KEY – when boiling your pasta (in salted boiling water), drain the pasta a good FOUR MINUTES sooner than the package directions say. Set aside about 1 cup of the cheddar cheese aside for the cheese topping at the end! Boil and drain the pasta Here I’m using both sharp cheddar and gruyere cheeses. I highly recommend grating your cheese from the block! Pre-shredded cheese is oftentimes coated with anti-clumping agents to prevent sticking, which results in less melting and sometimes a grainy texture. This was a 2.5 quart baking dish which was perfect for holding the pasta and all the sauce after cooking. Having made macaroni and cheese too many times to count, I cannot stress how important the size of your baking vessel is! I’m using 12 oz of pasta here, with about 3 cups of half & half as the base of the béchamel sauce. This recipe is pretty straightforward but there are a few key steps to make the best macaroni and cheese, so let’s get started! Choosing your baking dish My Ultimate Macaroni and Cheese: Recipe Instructions I like to keep a couple wedges of high quality cheese at home and my favorite place to buy them from is Costco! The quality and price is unbeatable. You can also taste the grainy texture from the additives. If at all possible, I would highly recommend not using pre-grated cheese! Pre-grated cheese contain preservatives to keep the cheese shreds from clumping and I find they don’t melt together as well. I do not recommend subbing these, as this is a key ingredient in this dish! This provides an incredible contrast to the rich and creamy pasta + cheese mixture. Panko breadcrumbs are drier and flakier than regular breadcrumbs, so they absorb less oil and creates a light & crunchier crust when baked. My main reason is because shells allow for more cheese to get captured within the fold when baked – this gives each mouthful a more even ratio of pasta to cheese! But you are more than welcome to use macaroni (or whatever short pasta of your choice) for this recipe! While traditional recipes use macaroni, I like to use shells in my version. I know, I know – the dish is macaroni & cheese.
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