Mac & Cheese

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This past Summer there were several articles out about macaroni and cheese being TOXIC. Yea, that's right. That powdered cheese-like product - it's bad for you. Don't pretend you didn't know that though. The truth is, there's NO reason not to make your own mac & cheese. It's SO simple. 

These stories, these dishes, this is what inspires me to do this show. Because it's such a simple dish, it's a childhood favorite, and a classic - and there is NO reason for it to come from a box. In literally the SAME amount of time, with a few pantry staples you can make a pot of mac & cheese. Only you'll be able to name all of the ingredients. You'll know what you're feeding your family. And best of all, your kids will see you cooking! And ultimately, they'll see the value in making their own food as well. Plus if you teach THEM how to do, then they can cook for YOU! See how that works?

This is a very basic recipe, but I promised over the summer that I would do a full episode with this, so here it is. Feel free to tweak it as desired. But please, do us all a favor and put the neon orange box DOWN! You don't need it! 

Mac & Cheese
Serves 6-8

1 lb. elbow pasta
4 tbs. butter
1/4 c. flour
1 c. milk (whatever milk you keep in your home)
2 c. shredded cheese (sharp yellow cheddar works best but you can use whatever you like)
salt & pepper

Heat a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions.

In a saute' pan, melt butter. Sift in flour to prevent clumping (you can just dump the flour in if you're really in a hurry). 

Stir until thick and slightly browned. 

Pour in milk and stir until evenly combined. Heat until the whisk creates lines across the pan. 

Now stir in the cheese until melted. 

Add in cooked pasta and stir to coat. If the cheese sauce looks too thick add in some pasta water to loosen it. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

IF desired, pour into a baking dish, top with 1/4 c. of panko bread crumbs and bake at 350° for 15 minutes. 

Otherwise, serve warm with your favorite sides. 

Buon Appetito!