Macaroni and cheese. Mac and cheese

How to make some macaroni and cheese. Mac and cheese .

Although many of us know mac and cheese or macaroni and cheese , as one of the most famous pasta recipes in the US.

I am sure it will sound familiar to you thanks to its appearance in many films, it is actually a recipe that goes much further. You can read a little about its history a little further down, at the end of the recipe.

Perhaps the combination of pasta and cheese is a triumph of flavor, a perfect duo. Although I am not going to deceive you saying that they are light and very healthy macaroni.

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They actually have a great caloric intake. But hey, this recipe is well worth trying, they are totally impressive.

Among the cheeses traditionally used is Cheddar and Parmesan, even so there are recipes with others such as gruyere or gouda.

You can apply this same recipe to other types of pasta, the one that you like the most at any time. In my case I have chosen some Garofalo macaroons, the Penne Ziti Rigate , the most classic of its short pasta range.

A recipe with an important place in gastronomy in several countries. So much so that in the United States, July 14 has been classified as the national day of macaroni and cheese, there is a reason.

Preparation of the bechamel base

1. We start by preparing a good base for the enriched bechamel that we are going to cook.
2. In a saucepan add the milk, onion, leek, celery, parsley, bay leaf, salt and ½ teaspoon of black peppercorns.
3. Heat until the milk begins to boil, turn off the heat and let it rest, covering the pot for about 30 minutes.
4. Strain the milk and put it back on the fire setting aside 75 ml. for a cup. We will keep the milk warm to use in the bechamel.
5. In a wide saucepan or pan, heat the butter until it melts.
6. Add the flour and, without stopping stirring with some rods, cook the flour for a few minutes, until it begins to brown.
7. We incorporate the milk little by little, in batches of one or two tablespoons.
8. We have to integrate it with the rods before adding more quantity, each time. When we have all the milk integrated we will have a fine cream and without lumps.

Cheese sauce preparation

1. At this time we incorporate 100 grams of grated Parmesan cheese, salt and nutmeg.
2. We remove so that it integrates with the cream while we let it cook for about 3 or 4 minutes.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and add the mustard, the grated Cheddar cheese and ground pepper.
4. We put the pan on the fire again and continue stirring until the cheese melts and integrates with the rest of the sauce. We check for salt and remove from the fire.

Cooking the pasta and baking. Final presentation of macaroni and cheese

1. We cook the pasta according to the manufacturer’s instructions, without adding salt, which will provide the cheese will suffice. I advise you to read the post on how to cook pasta correctly so that nothing happens to you and they come out perfect.
2. Drain the pasta and add it to the pan where we have the bechamel sauce. Mix well and reserve.
3. Spread the chosen baking dish with butter and add half of the macaroni mixture.
4. Cover with half the mozzarella cheese and pour the rest of the pasta. We cover again with the rest of the mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle the entire surface with the remaining Parmesan cheese.
5. With the oven previously heated to 200º C, cook for about 15-20 minutes. At the perfect point is until we see that the cheese sauce bubbles.
6. As it is a strong dish we can accompany it with a light salad.

It is a perfect dish for a different and delicious menu, to lick your fingers, a whole plate of yummy.

These American-style macaroni and cheese with a cheese sauce, bechamel, and a cheese gratin coating. It is impossible that they are bad.

Remember to eat them in moderation and with many guests, sharing is happiness.

You can see in this step by step how to prepare this recipe for baked macaroni and cheese  that you will surely repeat at home over and over again.

Curiosities about this recipe

• It is a very old combination, they appear in books such as the Italian Liber de Coquina and the English Makerouns. Both super well-known books on medieval cuisine written in the 14th century, some pasta recipes with cheese and butter.
• The first recipe for this dish, within what would be modern cuisine, would appear written in 1769 in The English Housekeeper’s Experience , where macaroni is cooked with a bechamel sauce enriched with cheddar cheese, what we know as mornay sauce .
• His arrival in the USA took place at the hands of one of its presidents, Thomas Jefferson. He discovers the recipe in both France and Italy and begins an investigation to be able to prepare the macaroni he loved so much in his country.
• Although he ended up importing them from Italy, from the moment he put them on the menu of one of the state dinners, they began to become popular throughout the United States.
• It is a curious story for a dish as simple as it is tasty and nutritious.