Macaroni and Cheese

Ever since my daughter's first birthday, I've made her macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets, fruit and steamed vegetables for her birthday lunch.  My son turned one on Tuesday and as I planned his day, I wondered what I would make for him.   I decided to keep the tradition and make him the same meal I make for his sister.  

I've lately started to think that I don't like macaroni and cheese.  But, oh gosh, that doesn't even seem possible, does it?  Cheese and pasta?  I'm talking crazy.  For many years, I had one recipe I loved.  And recently, it has seemed grainy.   I started making another recipe that a friend swore by.  It was from her mother's Betty Crocker cookbook.   I made it and found it to be like glue.  I've tried countless other mac and cheese recipes from various blogs that I read.  Upscale and gourmet to classic and simple.  It seems like all the recipes I've made in the last year have been either grainy or glue-y.   

Last year, I had made this Cooks Illustrated recipe for macaroni and cheese several times and loved it.   Then forgot about it.  It's from their Best Make Ahead Recipes book.  I don't know why I stopped making it and trying other recipes, because this one is pretty much perfect.   Typically, I make this by the book, but this time, due to making it last minute, I made a few variations.  

The original recipe calls for Colby and cheddar cheeses.  I only had Colby and Monterrey Jack cheeses on hand, so that's what I used.  Which worked out fine.  It still had a good consistency too it, and it wasn't grainy at all.   Had I only had cheddar on hand, it may have been grainy since cheddar doesn't melt as well.  It also calls for chicken broth and milk for the liquids.   The chicken broth really deepens the flavor.   This time around, I didn't have quite enough chicken broth, so I subbed with water.   I'm sharing the recipe below as I normally make it, but just know that some improvisations are acceptable.   This recipe makes a lot, so I bake half for my family the day of and freeze the other half for another day. 

The birthday lunch was a total success.  Even more so than the birthday cake.  I can't believe my son is a year old already.  I look forward to serving him this every year on his birthday.  And sometimes it's nice to celebrate regular days, too! 

Baked Macaroni and Cheese
courtesy of Cook's Illustrated "The Best Make Ahead Recipe"
1 lb macaroni (elbow, shells, whatever your preference)
6 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 1/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
3 1/2 cups milk
4 cups colby cheese, shredded
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
salt and pepper to taste
toasted bread crumb topping*

Bring a pot of water to boil over high heat.  Add 1 tablespoon of salt and macaroni and cook until just beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.  Drain the pasta in a colander and set aside.

Wipe the pot dry, add the butter and set over medium heat until melted.  Stir in the garlic, mustard and cayenne and cook for about 30 seconds.   Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until golden, about 1 minute.  Slowly whisk in the milk and chicken broth.  Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often until bubbling and thick, about 15 minutes.  Off heat, add the cheeses and stir until melted.   Add salt and pepper to taste.

Stir in the pasta, breaking up any clumps.  Pour into a baking dish and sprinkle with crumb topping.

*For the crumb topping, I do any variation of breadcrumbs and melted butter tossed together.   Sometimes I add some shredded cheese to this, sometimes from fresh chopped parsley or chives.   But the ratio is typically about 1/4 cup breadcrumbs to 1 tablespoon melted butter.  

Usually I bake half in one baking dish (on 400 degrees for 30 minutes) and freeze the other half for another day.   I defrost it the night before I'm ready to bake it and then bake it covered with foil for 20 minutes on 400, then remove the foil for the last 10-15 minutes.  
If I bake a full recipe, I bake it for closer to 40 minutes.