Mac & Cheese

When your toddler’s favorite food is “cheese cheese cheese” (sung with squinted eyes and crinkled nose), you make a heck of a lot of mac & cheese. We’ll turn this one out on a Sunday afternoon and have leftovers for Owen’s lunch on Monday and Tuesday. Feel free to dress it up with peas and pancetta, shredded chicken, or even lobster. And grown-ups might like to add a bit of sriracha to their plates, too.

Method:

8 oz. dried elbow macaroni (or your favorite pasta)

6 slices white bread, crusts removed

5 tbl. unsalted butter

yellow onion, peeled and finely diced (about 1/4 c. total)

1/4 c. flour

3 c. whole milk

1/2 c. grated fontina cheese

1 c. grated gruyere cheese

2 c. grated white cheddar cheese

1 c. grated parmesan cheese

1/8 tsp. cayenne

1/8 tsp. grated nutmeg

coarse salt

freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

For the topping, reserve 1/2 c. fontina, 1/3 c. gruyere, 1/3 c. cheddar and 1/2 c. parmesan of the grated cheeses.

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and hit it with a palmful of coarse salt and the macaroni. Pull the pasta from the pot a good 2-3 minutes before the recommended cooking time. Drain well.

Tear the white bread and toss it into a food processor. Pulse a few times to form pea-sized breadcrumbs and drizzle with 2 tbl. melted butter.

Over medium heat, melt the remaining 3 tbl. butter and hit it with the onion. Saute until fragrant and translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add the flour and stir constantly for about a minute. Add the milk and whisk vigorously to combine. Bring the milk to a gentle simmer and stir constantly, about 4-5 minutes — the milk should thicken nicely and coat the back of the spoon. Add all but the reserved cheeses and stir to combine. Hit the cheese sauce with the cayenne and nutmeg and season to taste with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Add the macaroni to the cheese sauce and stir to combine.

Pour the mac & cheese into a buttered 1.5 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with the reserved cheeses and breadcrumbs. Set the casserole dish on a baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and the breadcrumbs are nice and toasty.