Friday, August 21, 2009

Recipe Friday: Macaroni and Cheese (with Bacon!)

Until I met my wife I'd never had home-made macaroni and cheese. It was always from a box, and prepared in the amount of time it took to cook noodles, and open the packet of neon yellowish cheese. If I went really crazy, I added sliced hot dogs to it!

Now I've come to realize that home-made macaroni and cheese doesn't have to take too long. And it will taste MUCH better. I've also learned that if I add about 20 minutes to the quick home-made mac and cheese recipe, it'll taste even better. In addition, I've learned that if I add bacon to the same recipe -- it'll taste EVEN BETTER. After all -- everything tastes better with bacon!

Below is my recipe for the best mac and cheese that I've ever created. I made this last week, and I enjoyed every bite!

Ingredients:
1 lb pasta (macaroni or rotelli)
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
1 1/4 cup milk
8 - 10 ounces shredded cheese (approx)
3 large thick-cut slices of bacon
(optional) 2 slices worth of dry sourdough bread crumbs

Directions:
1) Bring water to boil, and cook pasta
2) Cut bacon width wise into small pieces, and then cook in small pan. Once crispy, place in bowl with paper towel and set aside.
3) Place 1 tbsp butter into skillet and melt over medium/ high heat
4) Add flour and stir, once it starts to thicken, slowly add 1 cup of milk and stir continuously.
5) Once milk is boiling, slowly add cheese, stir continuously
6) If sauce gets too thick, add additional 1/4 cup of milk. Then add bacon.
7) Place cooked noodles in pre-buttered oven safe pan.
8) Pour cheese over noodles and stir
9) Top with extra cheese, and then top cheese with (optional) sourdough bread crumbs
10) Cook in oven at 350 for 20 mins. Enjoy!

2 comments:

  1. I love homemade mac & cheese, and the thought of adding bacon to it sounds incredible! I'm tempted to make a batch but w/out the bread crumbs. Have you ever made it that way?

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  2. Yes, I've made it without the bread crumbs, and it's still delicious! The bread crumbs are a recent addition to my mac and cheese recipe. I like the crunchy texture they bring to it. However, they should have been listed as optional... I've edited the post to show this.

    I hope you enjoy my recipe!

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