Quest for the Best Mac and Cheese

I love mac and cheese. I don't know many people who don't, but I can't make a blue box without scarfing the whole thing. Even if I put half of it in my bowl, and pack the other half away in the fridge, I can feel the magnetic pull of the processed cheesy goodness. I try not to even keep it in the house, but Phil ends up buying it because he loves it just as much, if not more, than I do. Our house rule: Don't make mac and cheese unless the other person is there to help you eat it.

We also want to implement the "No junk food unless you make it yourself" rule. Which has sent us on a quest to find the best mac and cheese recipes. I tried the first one for Phil's birthday. I was drawn to this recipe because it calls for one of my favorite ingredients: chipotle in adobo. The secret ingredient was also featured in my Holy Chipotle post (I apologize for the cutesy post titles, I am trying to get away from that!!). The other 2 "smokey" flavors are from the paprika and the smoked cheddar cheese.

The verdict? Phil and I both loved the unique smokey flavor and the buttery bread crumbs are awesome! My one minor issue is that I prefer my macaroni and cheese creamier. On the blog where I found the recipe (herbivoracious.com) commenters described it as creamy, so maybe I cooked it too long? I still haven't figured out my fickle oven. Check back for more updates on the great Mac and Cheese Quest!

Triple Smokey Macaroni and Cheese

Adapted from herbivoracious.com

1lb elbow macaroni

8 tablespoons butter, divided

4 cups cubed bread

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup AP flour

4 cups whole milk

1/2 onion, finely diced

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon rosemary, minced (I used dried)

1 chipotle pepper (canned in adobo sauce) minced

1 teaspoon oregano

1/4 tsp nutmeg (freshly grated if you have it)

8oz smoked cheddar grated

8oz mozzarella grated

salt to taste

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the macaroni according to package directions, but be sure not to cook it too long because it will bake more in the oven. Drain and toss with 2T of butter.

2. Put the bread in a food processor and pulse until you have some coarse bread crumbs. Heat 2T butter in a skillet over medium heat, add the garlic, a pinch of salt, and the breadcrumbs. Cook, tossing frequently, until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

3. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a large baking dish. Unless you have an oven like mine. In this case you probably should have pre-heated a few hours ago.

4. In a medium saucepan, melt the remaining 4T of butter over medium low heat. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk pretty constantly for 3 minutes. Whisk in the milk. Add the onion, smoked paprika, rosemary, chipotle, oregano and nutmeg. Simmer, whisking occasionally until it begins to thicken.

5. Gradually whisk in the grated cheese, stirring each batch until incorporated.

6. Taste the sauce, and adjust the seasoning as needed. Add more spiciness if desired. Remember that the sauce should be strong because it is going to be diluted by a pound of pasta.

7. Stir the macaroni into the sauce. Pour the macaroni into the pan.

8. Top with the breadcrumbs.

9. Bake for about 30 min or until you can see bubbling around the sides and the breadcrumbs are browned.

10. Let stand 5-10 min before serving.

Mozzarella and smoked cheddar. Wonder how it would be with smoked cheddar AND smoked mozzarella? I do live in Wisconsin so there is no shortage of cheese!

Making a rue!

Look at all the yumminess swimming in the milk!

I could not WAIT to try it at this point.

Yes, those bread crumbs are as yummy as they look!

Eat with Your Eyes: Market Edition

Due to the crazy success* of my last "Eat with Your Eyes" blog I decided to post another, this time it's the Market Edition. Taking pictures of food is fun, and while my food photography skills have improved I still have a long way to go before my pictures end up on magazine covers. Usually I take pictures of a dish at a restaurant or one I made at home, but I also have a few pictures from stores and markets. Mass quantities of fruits, vegetables, even packaged goods are fun photography subjects.

* My mom, boyfriend, and a few random twitter followers read it!

An ingredient I recently discovered and really love: chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. They are smokey, spicy, and delicious! See the Tortilla Soup recipe. I had a hard time finding them the first time, hopefully this pic will make it easier for you.

Wegman's

75 Locations in PA, VA, MD, NJ and NY

Massive quantity of olives.

Dellalo's

101 Lincoln Highway

Jeanette, PA 15644

Dried peppers or pretty hanging decorations? Both! This was taken at one of the most famous markets in the world.

Pikes Place Market in Seattle

1531 Western Avenue

Seattle, Washington 98101

Carrots at a lovely farmer's market in Olympia, Washington.

Olympia Farmers Market

700 Capital Way North

Olympia, Washington 98512

Tortilla Soup: Holy Chipotle!

I spend a ton of time with the Food Network chefs. They come in to my home, tell me stories about the dishes they make, and I feel like I have a special relationship with each of then.

Rachael Ray was one of my favorites to begin with. Her food is fun, not overly complicated or fussy. I have a few go-to recipes that came from Rachael's kitchen.

Rach also gave* me her cookbook 365 Days No Repeats, and I must admit I made a few recipes from there and I don't love all of them. Some fell a little bit flat in the flavor department, so you have to take her recipes with a grain of salt (literally!). Don't skimp on any ingredient that adds flavor and definitely taste it and add more seasoning as needed.

I was browsing some of her recipes online when I saw this one: Chicken Tortilla Soup with Chipotle and Fire Roasted Tomatoes

First reaction, Yumm-O! Quick, get out the EVOO and the Official RR Garbage Bowl** and let's get cooking. Not that easy, I went to three different grocery stores until I finally found the star ingredient: chipotle in adob0. I had never used it before but seen it on Food Network many times. It kind of reminds me of roasted red peppers, but in a spicy brown adobo sauce. I was looking for a jar but it actually comes in a little can. I found it in the Mexican section at the Commissary at Fort Lee. The Commissary always has good international ingredients, probably because military families who have lived overseas have some diverse tastes. Sad news is, you have to have a military ID or be with someone who has one to make purchases.

Now that I had successfully hunted down the chipotles I was ready to get cooking! Once I had the soup going I realized without the toppings and chiles it was basically just some canned tomatoes and some poached chicken. Yumm-O? More like Lame-O! Those peppers better be good.

I started with one (Rach called for two) because I am a pansy when it comes to spicy stuff. Wow, the soup tasted awesome! I added a couple big spoonfuls of the adobo sauce and the spice level was perfect. The flavor sort of reminds me of cumin, smokey and flavorful but not overly hot. My whole family loved it. For a minute there my parents were actually happy that I am temporarily crashing their empty nest. You must try this recipe! And check back here to see what I decide to do with the rest of the chipotles in adobe!!

* OK, so maybe my mom gave it to me, but my story is more fun.

** I don't actually own the Official Rachel Ray Garbage Bowl, but I've seen them in stores and it makes me chuckle that someone would actually buy a garbage bowl.