Mac and cheese, two ways

A couple of summers ago I lived in Sitka, Alaska. My culinary memories of this time mostly revolve around the delicious seafood that was in abundant supply there (if you haven’t eaten salmon or halibut within an hour of it being caught, then I would recommend adding that experience to your bucket list), but the other food that I associate with that time in my life is mac and cheese.

For some reason my roommates and I all developed quite the blue box fetish that summer. Perhaps it can be attributed to the fact that the summer in Sitka was the coldest and rainiest we’d ever experienced and mac and cheese was the cheapest and quickest form of comfort food, or maybe this phenomenon was just a result of it being available in bulk at the otherwise understocked grocery stores. Whatever the cause, the point is you could usually find one of the inhabitants of our apartment preparing a box of Kraft macaroni and cheese on any given day.

I usually reserved my weekly mac and cheese meal for Sunday afternoons after church. I would come home, change into some comfy sweatpants, and whip up some chemically altered cheese and noodles. In this process I discovered that I like my mac and cheese creamy. As in swimming in cheesy sauce. This means that when I prepared it from a box I would usually add more milk and sometimes a little more butter to achieve that consistency. It also means that for years I never had a homemade version of macaroni and cheese that I truly loved.

See, most homemade versions of mac and cheese that I’ve come across are of the baked variety, meaning they are made by making a roux and adding milk, cheese and seasonings to it, then stirring the cooked noodles in and baking the whole shebang in the oven. This approach has never really done it for me, as the outcome tends to be a firmer, more casserole-type dish. And even though some recipes recommend just eating the pasta and sauce before baking if you like a more creamy approach, I find that somehow there is a floury taste that carries over from the roux.

I found my mac and cheese salvation in Alton Brown’s stovetop recipe. This approach produces that creamy texture I love without using ultra-processed ingredients. It’s also super easy and is my favorite way to make mac and cheese. However, I live with a husband whose macaroni and cheese preferences differ significantly from mine in that he actually likes the baked stuff, preferably with crushed ritz crackers sprinkled on top (what the?) So for dinner one night I kept his preferences in mind by making some baked mac and cheese from a recipe that came highly recommended. He loved it, and, while I didn’t really care for it all that much, I can safely blame that on my personal preferences and not any flaws in the recipe. So here are both recipes for your consideration:

Baked Macaroni and Cheese (adapted from the Ivory Favorites cookbook)

I honestly think I would like this recipe if the sauce amounts were doubled. But then the butter and cheese amounts are doubled too so that kind of becomes a hard pill to swallow. Yet chances are that if you’re eating mac and cheese you’re in an indulgent mood in the first place so perhaps there’s no need to worry about it.

1 pound macaroni ( I used spiral pasta instead)
1/4 cup butter
4 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
Dash of hot sauce (I like siracha)
3 cups grated Cheddar cheese (medium or sharp)
~1/2 cup crushed Ritz crackers (optional)

1) Cook macaroni in boiling, salted water according to package directions and drain.
2) In large saucepan, melt butter. Add flour and stir. Pour in milk and cook, stirring constantly, until thick.
3) Add salt, pepper, and dry mustard, and then add 2 1/2 cups of cheese and stir until cheese is melted. Remove from heat and add cooked macaroni and mix together.
4) Pour into buttered 9" x 13" square baking pan, sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese on top (and Ritz cracker crumbs, if using). Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese (from Alton Brown via foodnetwork.com)
1/2 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
6 ounces evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
10 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded (I prefer medium)

1) In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente and drain. Return to the pot and melt in the butter. Toss to coat.
2) Whisk together the eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Stir into the pasta and add the cheese. Over low heat continue to stir for 3 minutes or until creamy.

Some Simple Valentines Day Treats

I love Valentines Day. Always have. Even when I was single and didn't have anyone buying me flowers or taking me out to fancy restaurants. I just think that celebrating love in any of its forms is a good thing. Plus Valentines Day is a true chocoholic's dream, which is why I'm surprised that only one of the recipes below contains chocolate (and even then it's a humble rolo), but I guess that's because most of these treats were made with other people in mind. I think my own sweet tooth will be satisfied when I make my favorite chocolate covered strawberries this weekend.

Homemade Marshmallows (Gourmet, December 1998 via epicurious.com)

I mentioned these little guys in my previous post. Although I've never been too big on marshmallows, I have to say that I much prefer these to the store-bought version. They are light, fluffy, and perfectly sweet. Plus they were really fun to make, at least if your idea of fun is watching a sticky mess of gelatin and sugar syrup whip up into white fluffy deliciousness right before your very eyes. I cut these out with a small heart-shaped cookie cutter to make them festive, but if you really wanted to up the V-Day factor you could add a small amount of red food coloring to the marshmallow batter to make them pink. Oh, and I should probably tell you that these were fantastic dipped in chocolate (but really, what isn't?)

about 1 cup powdered sugar
3 1/2 envelopes (2 tablespoons plus 2 1/2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup hot water (about 115°F.)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites*
1 teaspoon vanilla

1) Oil bottom and sides of a 13- by 9- by 2-inch rectangular metal baking pan and dust bottom and sides with some powdered sugar.
2) In bowl of a standing electric mixer or in a large bowl sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let stand to soften.
3) In a 3-quart heavy saucepan cook granulated sugar, corn syrup, hot water, and salt over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to moderate and boil mixture, without stirring, until a candy or digital thermometer registers 240°F., about 12 minutes. Remove pan from heat and pour sugar mixture over gelatin mixture, stirring until gelatin is dissolved.
4) With standing or a hand-held electric mixer beat mixture on high speed until white, thick, and nearly tripled in volume, about 6 minutes if using standing mixer or about 10 minutes if using hand-held mixer.
5) In a large bowl with cleaned beaters beat whites (or reconstituted powdered whites) until they just hold stiff peaks. Beat whites and vanilla into sugar mixture until just combined.
6) Pour mixture into baking pan and sift 1/4 cup confectioners― sugar evenly over top. Chill marshmallow, uncovered, until firm, at least 3 hours, and up to 1 day.
7) Run a thin knife around edges of pan and invert pan onto a large cutting board. Lifting up 1 corner of inverted pan, with fingers loosen marshmallow and let drop onto cutting board. With a large knife trim edges of marshmallow and cut marshmallow into roughly 1-inch cubes.
8) Sift remaining confectioners' sugar into a large bowl and add marshmallows in batches, tossing to evenly coat.

Marshmallows keep in an airtight container at cool room temperature 1 week.


Red Velvet Cupcakes

I know that red velvet cake is probably the most overdone Valentines Day dessert out there but I can never resist it so I made these cupcakes for a friend's birthday this weekend. Well, I actually intended to make these whoopie pies but then the laziness factor kicked in so I considered making whoopie pies from cake mix instead but eventually ended up just baking a quick batch of cupcakes. Yes, I did stray from my "always bake from scratch" ethos on this one but I figure that most red velvet recipes call for about a full bottle of red food coloring anyway so using a cake mix isn't that big of a deal. I do, however, insist on homemade frosting. Frosting from a can is a sad, sad thing.

1 Red Velvet cake mix (Duncan Hines brand is best)
1 small box instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
4 eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
½ cup water.

1) Using either a stand or hand-held electric mixer, mix all ingredients on medium speed for 3 minutes.
2) Spoon into paper-lined muffin tins (fill about 2/3 full) and bake at 350 for about twenty minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Frost with one of the following (I much prefer the cream cheese version- I only made the vanilla cause the birthday girl preferred it.)

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 stick butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2-4 cups sifted powdered sugar (depending on how sweet and thick you want the frosting to be- taste as you go)
2 tsp. vanilla

1) Beat butter and cream cheese together
2) Add sugar and vanilla and beat until of spreading consistency.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
1 stick butter, softened
4 cups sifted powdered sugar (depending on how sweet and thick you want the frosting to be- taste as you go)
2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup milk

1) Cream butter, then add the sugar and beat for a minute or two.
2) Beat in milk and vanilla. Add more milk if necessary to achieve desired spreading consistency.

Pretzel/Rolo/Peanut Butter bites

I wasn't sure what to call these things. I considered "homemade Take 5", since their ingredients are essentially the same as the candy bar, but that didn't really fit. Neither does the term "pretzel turtle", which is what these are called should you choose to put a pecan in the middle instead of the M&M. Honestly, given their perfect blend of sweetness and salt I would say they should be called PMS lifesavers. But I don't think I'll refer to them by that name when I hand these out to co-workers on Monday.

Checkerboard pretzels
Rolos, unwrapped
Peanut butter M&Ms

1) Place pretzels on a baking sheet and put one unwrapped rolo on top.
2) Bake at 300 degrees for about 4 minutes, or until Rolo is fairly melted.
3) Remove from oven and let cool for 1 minute, then place M&M on top.
4) Let sit for about an hour, or until chocolate hardens.

If you're looking for a more sophisticated Valentines Day treat, might I suggest these cupcakes? And these molten chocolate babycakes would be a perfect ending to a romantic dinner for two.

Hope all of you have a happy Valentine's Day!

Irish Blue Crackers

Monday night was one of those nights where I cooked just for the fun of it. It was snowy and cold outside, Butch was at school, and I suddenly felt the need to make something more fun and whimsical than the tofu and veggie stir-fry I had planned for dinner that night. So I went ahead and whipped up some homemade marshmallows (which I will tell you about later) and, because I was on a roll and still had an hour to kill before I needed to start the stir-fry, went ahead and made these crackers too.

The cool thing about making things like marshmallows and crackers from scratch is that, for me at least, these are the kind of items usually purchased in boxes and bags from the grocery store and produced using unknown methods in distant factories. Creating them in your very own kitchen feels like solving a mystery or starring in your very own episode of Unwrapped. There is also something to be said for cooking with no other intent than to fulfill your curiosity about how a certain food is made. A truly indulgent first-world form of therapy to be sure, but I recommend it nonetheless.

Now how exactly did these crackers turn out, you ask? I loved them but if you’re expecting the crunch of wheat thins or saltines then look elsewhere. These crackers are more like a flat, slightly crispy version of a buttery, flaky biscuit. The inclusion of blue cheese adds just the right amount of flavor without being overpowering (just ask Mike, who hates blue cheese but happily ate these crackers and was none the wiser until I informed him of the ingredients). They are just the kind of thing that I would want to crumble into a big bowl of tomato soup on a cold winter night.

Irish Blue Crackers (from Nigella Lawson's How To Be A Domestic Goddess: Baking and The Art of Comfort Cooking)


OK, so I really liked these crackers and so did Butch, but then my sisters tasted them and were not huge fans. But they are kind of fussy individuals so I’m not going to take their opinion as a general consensus. So if you try these will you do me a favor and let me know if you like them? I want to know if they really are gross and maybe I just love them in the same way that a mother loves an ugly baby.



3/4 cup cashel blue or other blue cheese, crumbled
scant 1/2 cup butter, softened
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup blue cornmeal (I just used yellow. According to Nigella you can just use all flour)
pinch of salt
1 beaten egg for glazing (optional)

1) Mix the cheese, butter and egg yolk together.
2) Work in the cornmeal, flour, and salt until a soft dough forms.
3) Shape into a fat disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4) Roll dough out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick.
5) Cut into desired shapes (I used hearts because valentine's day is coming up) and place on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Brush with egg glaze, if desired.
6) Bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes, until center is puffed and edges are crispy.

Chicken Tikka Masala and Naan

I’ve been fascinated by Indian culture for just about as long as I can remember. Granted, this fascination didn’t exactly come out of nowhere or result from reading a lot of Rudyard Kipling. See, when we first came to the U.S. my parents were pretty involved in the Hare Krishna movement, so some of my first memories involve colorful events at the Hare Krishna temple in Boston, where I was surrounded by a sea of saris (how do you like that alliteration?), lively music, and bright flower petals.

Although my parents eventually joined the LDS church and moved our family to Utah, a bit of that devotion to the far East still remained. My dad keeps a poster of yoga asanas hanging on the wall of his study and books like the Bhagavad Gita and Autobiography of a Yogi sit alongside his copies of The Book of Mormon and Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, my sister and I still like to bust out the old vhs tape of Sita’s Wedding-- a bollywood classic and our favorite movie when we were kids-- to drool over the gorgeous costumes and music, and many of the wooden spoons in my parents’ kitchen are stained yellow with tumeric, a colorful spice used in Indian cooking.

Most of the Indian food my mom cooked was simple, vegetarian fare. Things like a potato and spinach curry that she called sabji, or a bright yellow rice dish with potatoes, cauliflower, and tomatoes that didn’t really have a name, at least not one I can recall at the moment. So I didn’t encounter rich dishes like this tikka masala or vegetable coconut kurma (my favorite) until I grew older and started venturing out to Indian restaurants, but rest assured that I loved them all at first bite.

Chicken tikka masala consists of chicken marinated in yogurt and spices, then grilled and served in a spicy tomato cream sauce. This version, though it might not be the most authentic recipe out there, tastes pretty darn close to the tikka masala I’ve had at my favorite Indian restaurants. Served with some basmati rice* and naan, it brought a welcome flair to our dinner table.

Chicken Tikka Masala (adapted from allrecipes.com)

When I went to make this recipe I found a note that I had previously made to double the sauce. I followed that instruction this time around but found that it was a little overkill. If you like plenty of sauce to soak up the rice and dip your naan in, I would say do about one and a half times the sauce proportions listed below.

Oh, and this isn't traditional but I added some frozen peas just because I had them and felt like it.

Marinade:
1 cup yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 teaspoon salt
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
4 long skewers

Sauce:
1 tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1) In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 1 teaspoons salt. Stir in chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2) Preheat a grill for high heat. Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken onto skewers, and discard marinade. Grill until juices run clear, about 5 minutes on each side (Both times I’ve made this I haven’t wanted to use my grill so I just put the chicken on a wire rack on top of a baking sheet and baked it at 375 for about 15 minutes).
3) Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. Season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and 1 teaspoon salt. Stir in tomato sauce and cream.
4)Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add grilled chicken, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in frozen peas (if using). Transfer to a serving platter, and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Naan (from food.com)

I was so excited to make this after seeing how simple this recipe was and what rave reviews it was getting. When mine turned out heavy and didn’t puff up too much, I immediately went to look for some kind of user error. Sure enough, my baking powder expired a year ago. So I’m going to go ahead and recommend this recipe anyway, since it seemed to work out just fine for 130 other people, who I’m assuming didn’t use old baking powder.

4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups plain low-fat yogurt

1) Mix together flour, baking powder and salt.
2) Stir in the yogurt till the dough is too stiff for a spoon, then knead it in the bowl till it holds together well, adding more flour if necessary.
3) Turn it out on a floured surface and continue kneading for about 5 minutes till the dough feels smooth and elastic.
4) Form the dough into a ball and put it in an oiled bowl, covered with a towel, to rest for an hour or longer.
5) Take the dough out and cut it into 10 equal pieces. Form each into a ball and press the balls flat into round discs.
6) Heat a large frying pan or griddle, either seasoned cast iron or a good non-stick finish.
7) Heat your oven to about 500 and have the broiler on (this is how the original recipe states it - I know with my oven it's either 500 degree oven OR the broiler, but you get the idea.
8) Take 1 piece of dough at a time and roll it out on a floured surface till it is about 8-10 inches across and less than 1/4 inch thick.
9) Lay it on the hot griddle and cook it over a medium heat for 4-5 minutes (I don't think mine took that long).
10) It will puff up in places or all over, and there will be some blackish-brown spots on the bottom.
11) Slide a spatula under the naan and transfer it to the oven, directly onto the rack, for a minute or two, just till it finishes puffing up into a balloon and begins to color lightly on top.
12) Remove naan from the oven and brush it lightly with melted butter if you like.
13) Continue this way with all the dough, stacking the breads into a napkin-lined basket.
14) Serve the breads hot, fresh from the oven, or let them cool and wrap them up.
15) To reheat, wrap them in aluminum foil, in packets of 4 or 5 breads and put them in a 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes.

*Basmati rice is a long, thin rice that cooks up very dry and light. You can buy it at Asian markets and I believe in bulk at costco. I bought some from the bulk section of Whole Foods and it wasn't that great. Usually I just steal it from my parents' kitchen.

Not a recipe, but still worth your time

I posted a link to this article on my facebook page this morning, but thought I would share it here as well:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/01/a-food-manifesto-for-the-future/?WT.mc_id=OP-SM-E-FB-SM-LIN-AFM-020311-NYT-NA&WT.mc_ev=click

After doing a lot of reading on this subject for the past year and a half, I can say that I agree wholeheartedly with the points made in this article and hope that these goals can be accomplished in my lifetime. Many of the current methods used to produce food in our country are toxic for both our bodies and the environment and this issue really needs to be a matter of national concern rather than just some fringe movement dismissed as something only elitists and hippies care about.

To show just how messed up things are these days, I thought I would share an excerpt from an email I recently received from Christiansen Farm, a local farm from which Mike and I buy our meat. This enterprise is a truly admirable one in which animals are raised the way they should be. They sell top-quality beef, pork, and, until recently, chicken:

"...our plans [to sell chickens in 2011] have recently been squashed by the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF). Last winter we spoke extensively with the inspectors to find out how we could legally and safely process chickens for our customers. They helped us get set up under an exemption that allowed small farms to process their own poultry. Under this exemption, we had a young aspiring butcher process our chickens outdoors on our property following safety guidelines set forth by the department. This has worked wonderfully all year. Recently, we received a call from the department informing us that we would now have to take the live chickens to each of our customer's private property and process them on their property in order to continue under this small farm exemption. We protested their request stating that not only would it be economically unfeasible, less sanitary, and ridiculously time consuming, but that no city would allow for processing poultry in people's driveways. However, they refused to budge. Our only alternative is a costly one, which would require us to build a full blown processing facility. Even if we were able to justify such an investment the UDAF informed us that there isn't an inspector in Utah who is even certified to inspect our facility. So, for now poultry is on hold for 2011 as we explore our options.

So apparently the chicken sold in grocery stores--which comes from animals who stand in their own crap all day and get pumped full of all kinds of crazy drugs, then slaughtered using methods that are both inhumane and often unsanitary--are just fine to eat, yet chickens raised and butchered using traditional methods that farmers employed for hundreds of years are deemed unfit for consumption? Ethical issues aside, the sheer stupidity of this frustrates me.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed my moment on the soapbox. Tomorrow I'll be back to normal with a recipe for some delicious Indian food.