World's best macaroni & cheese

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No, I don't have the recipe but I'm looking for it! Having grown up on Kraft brand mac & cheese "original", my mom tells the story of me spending the night at Gramma's house and taking a box of it with me instead of my favorite stuffed animal. That's how much we love mac & cheese. I'm willing to try baked, microwave, stove-top, you name it. Thanks in advance for your favorite recipe!

-- Charleen in WNY (harperhill@eznet.net), October 10, 2001

Answers

Charleen- Mac and Cheese is one of our Favorites and theres a gazillion ways to make it. The easiest-(for those hactic "Oh What am I going to have for dinner nights) Is to simply cook two cups of elbow Macoroni on the stove (make sure you add a little salt) then, drain, the water, and put hot noodles in microwave dish, add a little butter/margerine, about a cup of shredded whatever-kind-of-cheese- you have on hand heat for about a minute or so stir it all together- There you are! Add a quick canned or frozen vegtable, maybe some left over bread or rolls and you've got a decent meal on the table in about 15 minents.

Now, if you have more time-Cook the elbow macaroni, while thats cooking make a cheese sauce-which is only a white sauce with about a cup of cheese added-I uasually use chedder but over types will work, butter a caserole dish. mix together the noodles and cheese sauce, pour in the caserole, add bread crumbs, or if you have any, crushed potato chips, and bake in a 350 oven til the top is nicely browned.

Or you can get really fancy-for example, Last Sat. Night, I used Penne pasta, and a Mozzarerella/parmesan cheese sauce with chopped olives, garlic and herbed bread crumbs- but basically its the same dish.

You can toss in goodies too-like the olives, or chopped ham/tuna, or a vegtable. Sometimes I add some green peas and we have MacCheese and Peas.

-- Kelly in Ky. (ksaderholm@yahoo.com), October 10, 2001.


Oprah's favorite has several kinds of cheese in it. :~}

-- Cindy (S.E.IN) (atilrthehony@countrylife.net), October 10, 2001.

We always melted about a pond of velveeta type cheese, (now I use Aldi's brand) added some oregano and some finely chopped onion. Heat in microwave until melted and add to cooked macaroni. It has a different taste that is very good.

-- Melissa (me@home.net), October 10, 2001.

We did the white sauce method with Velveeta added. Sometimes we baked it with seasoned bread crumbs on top; usually we just mixed sauce with noodles and served it with salad for a quick, no mess supper.

-- Cathy N. (keeper8@attcanada.ca), October 10, 2001.

A pound!!!!!! not a pond full!! of cheese that is.

-- Melissa (me@home.net), October 10, 2001.


I think we all knew what you meant, Melissa, but wouldn't it be funny to collect all these e-mail bloopers!! We'd all be ROFL! Imagine a pond of cheese!! My children would love it, with giant tortilla chip rafts and little islands of salsa.

-- Cathy N. (keeper8@attcanada.ca), October 10, 2001.

This one is off the wall, but turns out very good. Daughter won a 4H food ribbon with this one.

In a 9x13 oven safe pan melt 2T of butter or margarine. Can be done in the preheating 350deg. oven. Add 16 oz. bag of elbow noodles, pinch of salt and pepper. Stir to coat the noodles. Add 2 cups shredded cheese (Longhorn, jack, or colby), evenly spread over top of noodles. Gently pour a qt.[4 cups] milk into the pan. Bake in preheated oven (350)until liquid is all absorbed and top is beginning to brown slightly.

I know it sounds crazy, but it really works.

-- melina b. (goatgalmjb1@hotmail.com), October 10, 2001.


I use the white sauce w/velveeta only stove top, no baking. Pretty fast and the only kind my son will eat.

-- DW (djwallace@ctos.com), October 10, 2001.

I make macaroni and cheese a lot of different ways depending on my mood at the moment. Onions sauteed in butter or olive oil until they are a sweet golden brown make an especially nice addition. Or you can just dress up the box kind this way: Cook the noodles as usual. Then melt the butter called for and shake the cheese powder over it, and stir until you have a smooth paste. Pour a little bit of the milk into the paste, stirring over low to medium heat. When all the lumps ae out and the sauce is smooth and consistent, pour in a little more, and so on, until all the milk has been added. You can add flour at the same time as the cheese powder, and then add more milk than called for, if you want extra sauce. When the sauce is made, pour it over the macaroni as it is, or add more grated cheese to it to beef it up. I have used all kinds, from blue cheese to pepper jack or parmesan, they've all been good!

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), October 11, 2001.

You mean to tell me that all Mac & Cheese does not come from boxes! I am shocked!

-- Mark in N.C. Fla. (deadgoatman@webtv.net), October 14, 2001.


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