When Macaroni & Cheese Baking Becomes a Competitive Event

Every family has those recipes that always pop up in our memories as we think back over years of meals--maybe a homemade lasagna that an Italian aunt used to make or a particular jello salad that always would grace the buffet table (growing up Lutheran I came across many a jello salad in my years...and I will never understand this phenomenon).  My extended family on my dad's side grew up getting together many times a year, we all lived within easy driving distance from one another and saw one another often, which means many family meals were enjoyed together.  I have memories of lots of great food, but the one dish that probably stands out the most to any of us in the Hanson family is the nostalgia of Grandma's Macaroni & Cheese.  She made it for decades, and any time there was a family get together we all knew that one night was guaranteed to be a macaroni and cheese night.  If there was just my family of 4 in attendance only one 9x13 pan was needed but if all 22 of us were in attendance she'd break out multiple dishes in order to double or triple the recipe.  No one ever went hungry at grandma's table, there was always more than enough to go around.  Now that I'm older and know how to cook, I look at her recipe and I realize there really wasn't anything fancy about it.  She'd press polish sausages into the top of the pan to bake with the noodles so the meal was always mac and cheese with sausage and often a side salad and bread.  She didn't use fancy cheese or include any unique seasonings, it was simple macaroni and cheese that appeared on the table bubbly hot from the oven, the noodles on the sides of the pan a bit crisper than those in the middle.  When she died two years ago we all talked about her table many times and each time someone always brought up mac and cheese.  Grandma's table will undoubtedly appear in this writing series several more times, it was the center of so many of my food-related memories, but it was her macaroni and cheese that will always stand out in all of our minds as her quintessential dish--Midwestern, definitely not low-calorie, warm, comforting and able to feed as big of a crowd as appeared at her tables. 

A couple of years ago several of us gathered in Colorado for a long weekend of letting the great-grandkids play at their Oma and Opa's house and my uncle suggested to us ahead of time that we should do a macaroni and cheese bake off one night.  He put several of us in charge of finding a recipe we wanted to submit and that day everyone arrived at his house with their 9x13 pans labeled with what was inside.  My sister and I were put in charge of one of the dishes and we spent lots of time scouring Pinterest and testing recipes at our own homes before settling on the one we were going to make that day for the competition.  We had about 5 pans of macaroni and cheese to try that night--Grandma of course made her usual recipe, two of my cousins worked on a lobster mac and cheese (which was rich, creamy and divine!), I think there was some kind of butternut squash mac and cheese and our submission for that night was "Irish Cheddar Mac and Cheese with Rosemary and French Fried Onions."  It was quite the title.  But oh my goodness.  It is heavenly.  It was definitely one of the favorites of the evening. 

What I remember most about that day isn't the specific recipes we each used.  I know the food was good and rich and everything comforting a pan of macaroni and cheese should be.  But what I remember most about our bake off, and so many other family meals over the years, is the feeling of being fed, of being safe, of being included.  Grandma always used to set the table for big family gatherings using place cards to assign seats.  There was always some eye-rolling as I'm sure some of us thought that was being too particular and couldn't we all just sit where we wanted?  (And I know for a fact there were some attempts at trying to stealthily sneak through the dining room and swap the place cards before it was time to eat).  But as I have spent more time reflecting on her table and listening to my cousins share their memories the thing that stands out the most is that there was always a place for us.  I think in some ways, her taking time to write each of our names on a place card was her way of saying "look Sarah, look Christopher, look Mikaela, I've thought of YOU.  I have a place for YOU here at my table.  You are welcome here and you will be fed."  She always made plenty of food--there were always leftovers and always plenty if someone showed up at the last minute--but she also made room.  She took the time and attention to set the table with each of us in mind, placed the high chairs and booster seats for little ones just so and walked around her table setting out name cards on top of each plate, making room for each person to have a seat around her table.  She made room for whoever showed up, and we will never forget that feeling of being wanted and included.  The many many pans of macaroni and cheese we enjoyed over the years were just a bonus. 

The recipe I’m sharing today is actually the recipe my sister and I made the day of our macaroni and cheese cook off.  It is rich, creamy, decadent, and my kids adore it.  Aidan asks for it by asking for “that really good Mac and cheese mommy, you know, that really really good one!”  It makes a TON so the next time I do make it I’m going to half it—even feeding 6 people we end up with a lot of leftovers.  The cheeses aren’t cheap, which makes this my “special occasion” meal—the aged cheddar can be found in deli sections but adds up, so halving it would make it more affordable too.  I promise, this one doesn’t disappoint!  

5 sprigs fresh rosemary, (about 6" each)
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
3 cups fat-free milk
14 ounces Kerrygold Aged Cheddar cheese
8 ounces Tillamook extra sharp cheddar cheese
6 ounces Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon coarse ground mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 pound whole wheat pasta (elbows or sea shells)
6 ounces French's French Fried Onions
salt and pepper to taste

Fill large pot with water, olive oil, a pinch of salt and rosemary sprigs. Bring to a boil and add the pasta. After five minutes, remove the rosemary. Continue to cook pasta per package instructions, then drain and set aside.

While pasta is cooking, shred the cheeses. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a large rectangular baking pan.

Using the same large pot, melt butter and once melted, add flour and whisk. Continue whisking and cooking for one minute. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for five minutes, whisking occasionally.

Remove the pot from heat and add the cheeses, mustard, cayenne, salt and pepper. Stir until cheeses are melted and the sauce is smooth.

Add cooked pasta to the pot and stir to combine. Spoon mac and cheese into prepared baking dish and sprinkle the French fried onions on top.  Bake for 30 minutes or until top is browned and cheese is bubbling.

Let sit for five minutes prior to serving.