I don’t know about you, but I have always loved macaroni and cheese. My mom never made “box” mac and cheese, so when I grew up and had a family of my own, I always made homemade too. I always think of this dish as the classic comfort food. I am going to be honest here. I used to cut up hot dogs, stir them in and bake it in the oven. Offer up a little side salad, and that was dinner. It was always very busy in our household. When my kids were young, I was working as a preschool teacher and teaching aerobics at a local gym 3-5 days a week. We had after school sports (practice, games etc.). I’m sure this sounds all too familiar to so many!!
Flash forward, and I still love this delicious comfort food. I love adding tomatoes or cooked broccoli (whatever veggie you like). This mac and cheese is a twist on my classic recipe. I added scallions, olive oil, water, and lemon juice. Also, I use shredded cheddar instead of gruyere. Let’s get started:)!
Ingredients:
- 2 cups of your favorite pasta
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (28 grams)
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (18 grams)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (27 grams)
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced scallions, white part only
- 1/4 cup water (59 grams)
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- 1 cup shredded cheddar gruyere cheese (110 grams)
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
Cook pasta and set aside while you make the (roux) bechamel sauce.
Melt the butter over a medium/high heat in a small saucepan. Add the flour and whisk to make a paste. Continue to cook for about a minute, stirring constantly, until the raw flour aroma is gone. Take the roux off the heat and set aside.
Add the olive oil and scallions to a large skillet and cook over a low heat for 2-3 minutes until the scallions have softened. Increase the temperature and add the water and milk to the olive oil/scallion mixture. Bring to a simmer and whisk in the roux. Continue to cook until the bechamel becomes thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Take mixture off the heat and add the cheese, lemon juice and season (to taste).
Add the cheese mixture to the cooked pasta and stir to coat.
I added sliced cherry tomatoes and sprinkled seasoned panko bread crumbs on top. This is optional, but I highly recommend it! Enjoy!!
I hope you make this delicious “grown up” mac and cheese. If you do, please tag me on Instagram @goodeatsbymimi. I’d love to hear from you and see your photos!