This past weekend I was very excited because I was planning on having a fellow foodie over for dinner, so I was getting ready to pull out all the stops. Unfortunately plans changed at the last minute, as they sometimes do. Luckily for me, my life has no shortage of foodies in it, so I was able to bring all my food up to my sister’s house and serve it to her and her husband.
I had been craving macaroni and cheese for a while, but kept putting it off. Finally, after sitting down in front of some Food Network, I caught Ina Garten making her Truffle Mac and Cheese, and I knew that I had to make it.
I have to admit, that I can see the draw of mac and cheese from a box, because to make the dish right there are a whole lot of steps. This recipe is no different. It starts with cooking down a bunch of mushrooms with sherry. Because I love garlic, I added a couple of minced cloves into the pan with the mushrooms, as well as a sprinkling of dried thyme. I just can’t help myself from tinkering with a recipe.
After the mushrooms were cooked, the juggling act began. I had three burners going at once, but still managed to time everything perfectly: roux in one pan, milk warming in a pot, and pasta bubbling away on the third. There were a lot of steps, but they were all very simple; they just required good timing and a willingness to put some work into the dish… work that would pay off.
The recipe does have one little snag: it calls for truffle butter. I thought that I was going to have trouble finding it, and I was prepared to pick up some truffle oil and do the best I could with the recipe. I was lucky enough, however, to find the exact amount of truffle butter that I needed sitting on the shelf in Whole Foods. If you do find truffle butter, here is a bit of advice: don’t smell it. Seriously, the odor is overwhelming. It turned my stomach a little bit, but the truffles didn’t end up spoiling the dish. In fact, they added a complex undertone to the cheese (cheddar and gruyere) and mushrooms.
The mac and cheese was really delicious, with the cheddar and gruyere adding different flavors that blended really nicely, along with the earthy mushrooms. Mac and cheese is a great comfort food because of the rich, creamy sauce. I added some crushed red pepper to the cheese sauce to give the dish a little kick, and it did the trick.
Overall, it was a delicious and decadent mac and cheese, and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fancy recipe. I find mac and cheese to be a little rich to be the only thing on the plate, so I served it with some grilled chicken marinated in balsamic vinegar and honey, roasted tomatoes, and some greens. It turned out great, and all the flavors really worked well together.
Clacked by Bob Degon
on Jun 17, 2009 @ 12:00 EST5EDT
I too was able to taste this fabulous mac and cheese. Great recipe and worth the work. Thanks.