This ain't Grandma's mac and cheese....

There are days when good, old-fashioned mac and cheese, like Grandma used to make, is a necessary dish at the dinner table.  Now, my grandma never made homemade mac and cheese – neither did Mom, that I can remember – so, I didn’t know what I was missing until I tasted my husband’s grandma’s mac and cheese.  O. M. G.  I have never, ever tasted anything so delicious!  And honestly, I’m not a big mac and cheese person – I mean, I like it, but I don’t crave it or anything like that.  In fact, I was a bit leery when I first tasted hers because I’d never had homemade before.  Psht, boy was I way off!  So, of course, I asked her how she made it (Not right away, of course. I was too scared.  It was my first time meeting her and all and I was SUPER shy around the family.) and she said that she just made a white sauce, added cheese and macaroni and that was that.  Oh. Okay. Back then, I was thinking “um, what the heck is a white sauce?”  Ha!  Boy, have times and my cooking skills changed!  Anyway, I never did figure out the white sauce bit but I did get courage to try a few recipes.  None of them worked.  That blue box really can trap you with its processed cheesy goodness!  I mean, how do you top a day-glo orange side dish with a boring, tasteless, not orange “re-creation”?

Well folks, have I got news for you!  No, I didn’t figure out that white sauce but I did find an AWESOME blue box replacement!  Man oh man, was this version of mac and cheese good!  (Grant’s Mac and Cheese from the December 2006 issue of Food and Wine)  Smokey bacon-y goodness, tons of cheddar cheese and, because I used sharp paprika instead of sweet, a tiny little kick to help remind you that you’re alive. J  I should also let you know that this recipe is about as far from healthy as you can get.  I used regular bacon, whole milk – 6 cups! – and a little more than a pound of cheddar.  So, if you’re watching your diet, you might want to either skip this recipe or make your own healthy swaps.  I wanted to try it as written first to see if it was any good – AND IT WAS! – and next time I make it, I will definitely do what I can to lighten it up.  Also, please note that the recipe says it makes 8 servings.  Not completely sure how they’re measuring serving size but it filled a 9x13 pan and seriously made enough to feed a small army!  Those serving sizes must be based on GIANT appetites! J  I recommend shrinking the recipe unless you are actually serving 8 people with the mac and cheese as the main course, which of course would be a delicious meal accompanied by a light salad.  Otherwise, prepare for leftovers for the rest of your life.

I also decided to try another new recipe with the mac and cheese.  Hey, it was Sunday and I had time.  Besides, I like to experiment and surprise my family.  So, earlier in the week, I had asked the family what they wanted for dinner this week.  First thing out of my husband’s mouth?  Corn dogs.  First thing out of Thing 2’s mouth?  Salmon.  Boy, are their tastes different!  Well, the hubby was in luck – ok, I should state that I generally don’t eat corn dogs. They just look weird to me. – because I actually found a recipe for corn dogs that sounded pretty interesting and was guaranteed to NOT look like those corn dogs you get from the frozen section of the grocery store. (I’m sorry but those do NOT look or sound appetizing to me at all. I mean, what are all those ingredients in the breading?!)  So, corn dogs and mac and cheese it was for dinner.  That’s like a kid’s (and husband’s) dream come true!  And yes, the salmon will come this week too. J

Curly corn dogs from Food and Wine, August 2005 was the recipe I tried.  The hot dogs are quartered lengthwise, battered and then pan-fried – no sticks required.  Because they’re quartered lengthwise, they become long and skinny and that’s why they curl.  Very cute!  And, for someone who doesn’t eat corn dogs, they were actually pretty tasty!  And, I could identify all the ingredients in the breading.  Bonus!  Of course, with the mac and cheese, we were all pretty full but I didn’t make that many corn dogs so it was okay.  Definitely don’t recommend pairing those two dishes – it’s quite a bit of heavy food but again, it was Sunday and hey, you only live once. J

So, two winner recipes in one day!  Yay!  If you try the mac and cheese and lighten it up,  let me know how it goes – I’m interested to hear.  I’ll definitely be making it again, that’s for sure.  The blue box may never make its way into my pantry again……

Here are the recipes.  Happy cooking, eating and drinking!

Grant’s Mac and Cheese

Serves 8

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

6 thick slices bacon (6 ounces), cut into ½-inch dice

1 medium onion, minced

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

6 cups whole milk

1 pound elbow macaroni

1 pound extra-sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (5 cups)

Salt

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Butter a 9-by-13-by-2 inch baking dish.  In a large saucepan, melt the butter.  Add the bacon and cook over moderate heat until crisp, about 7 minutes.  With a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate.

mmmm......bacon.....

2.  Add the onion and bay leaves to the saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the paprika and cayenne and cook, stirring, until fragrant.  Stir in the flour until blended.  Gradually whisk in the milk until the sauce is smooth.  Bring to a boil over high heat, whisking constantly, and cook until thickened.  Reduce the heat to low and simmer the sauce gently for 30 minutes, whisking frequently.  Discard the bay leaves.

simmering away

3.  Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Add the macaroni and boil until pliable but still undercooked, about 4 minutes.  Drain the macaroni and return it to the pot.

4.  Stir 4 cups of the cheddar into the hot sauce, add the bacon and season with salt.  Add the sauce to the macaroni and mix well.  Spread the mac and cheese in the baking dish and scatter the remaining 1 cup of cheddar on top.  Bake for about 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbling.  Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Yummy, cheesy goodness!

Make ahead:  The assembled mac and cheese can be refrigerated overnight.  Bring to room temperature before baking.

Curly Corn Dogs

Serves 8

1 1/3-cups fine cornmeal

2/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

½ teaspoon onion powder

2 large eggs

1 ½ cups milk

¼ cup honey

Vegetable oil, for frying.

8 hot dogs, quartered lengthwise

Mustard, for serving

1.  Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, pepper and onion powder.  In another bowl, whisk the eggs, then whisk in the milk and honey.  Using a rubber spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the wet until just blended.  Let the batter stand for 15 minutes.

sleepy batter

2.  In a large, deep skillet, heat ½ inch of vegetable oil to 350 degrees.  Set a large rack over a large, rimmed baking sheet.  Dip 4 hot dog strips in the batter to coat, then slip them into the hot oil.  Fry over moderate heat until browned and crisp, about 2 minutes.  Transfer to the rack to drain; keep the corn dogs warm in the oven while you finish frying.  Repeat, frying up to 6 strips at a time.  Serve hot, with mustard.

so cute and curly!