I know its been a while, school and work as an engineering major can be time consuming. Dont judge me.
So here is a rather simple recipe I found spelunking on the internets ive made my own and would like to share with you.
This is a very straightforward, easy meal to create and most of the ingredients you probably have on standby.
Needed:
3T Butter
3T flour
2T Mustard
1 egg
12-16 oz assorted cheese
1/2 lb Macaroni elbows
So the starting prep is rather easy. Whisk together the flower and butter on medium in a saucepan. Let fry/simmer for 5-6 minutes then add the milk and mustard. At this point you can also kick in up a notch with say crushed garlic, a pinch of paprika, crushed red pepper, black pepper, etc. Let this concoction simmer down for about 10 minutes, at this time it would also be a good idea to have you macaroni started a boiling in some salty water.
Now comes the fun part, add 8-10 oz of your assorted cheeses to the milk mixture youve been reducing and temper in your egg.
>>(Side note on tempering. Generally this requires beating the egg, then adding about 1T of your hot mixture to the egg to bring it to temperature and not curdle immediately when added to the whole of the mixture. I find this can be avoided by setting the egg in a bowl of very hot tap water for five or ten minutes before beating.)
Fold in your cooked and drained macaroni, then dump it all into a 2 Qt pan. Top this with your excess assorted cheese, and some bread crumbs if available and throw it in the oven at 350 for about 30 min.
The result is a tasty, creamy dish that you can enjoy for the next few days, because it makes a lot.
Cost breakdown. There were some sales at my local supermarket so ill put those prices down. Macaroni $.88/lb (so $.44), 16oz sharp cheddar $4, milk 2 Qt $1.7 (3 cups so $.95), assorted spices you should already have $2. Total comes in around 7.39 and serves at least 5 with sides or as a side 6-7. So your lookin at about $1.48 per serving at the worst, and its all homecooked goodness.
Go get your cook on
Thezinv's Blog 