Ok I’m done being sappy! In last month’s issue, there was an article celebrating the anniversary of the Food Network and they shared 20 unknown facts about the company. The number one fact was the most viewed and requested recipe, Alton Brown’s Mac and Cheese. So of course I had to try it! Holy cannoli! This mac and cheese is life-changing; seriously, a deal breaker! No wonder it is the most viewed recipe! This stuff is so delicious I had it for breakfast one morning!
I wish I could take credit for this recipe, but nothing this tasty has ever come out of my kitchen. You must try this!!! I noted my changes to the recipe in case you want to try this exactly the way I did.
Alton Brown’s Mac and Cheese
Ingredients:
1/2 pound elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon powdered mustard
3 cups milk
1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced OMIT
1 bay leaf OMIT
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 large egg
12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
Topping:
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup panko bread crumbs
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente.
- While the pasta is cooking, in a separate pot, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and mustard and keep it moving for about five minutes. Make sure it's free of lumps. Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, and paprika. Simmer for ten minutes and remove the bay leaf.
- Temper in the egg. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Fold the macaroni into the mix and pour into a 2-quart casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.It will look really soupy (like you did sometime wrong) when you put it in the dish, but after you bake it, it will be fine :-)
- Melt the butter in a saute pan and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for five minutes before serving.
