Mac 'n' Cheese

I planned on writing a historical post today, one all about the storied history of that great American poverty dish, macaroni and cheese. I imagined tales of settlers, huddled around hearth-baked cheesy noodles. I hoped to tell tales of the country's earliest cookbooks and of the nourishing of the nation's founding fathers. I wanted to regale you all with legends of creamy macaroni bolstering the rebel soldiers in the revolution. Reading up on it, however left me with little material to write about.

For starters, the dish is Italian, as one might expect, given the ingredients. The earliest references to what we would recognize as macaroni and cheese are in 15th century Italian cookbooks. Contrast this to the first American references in the early 19th century; not much room to claim this a a very 'American' dish. Macaroni and cheese made it's way to colonial America via British settlers who had long been making a version they copied from the Italians. In fact, by the time of the American Revolution, the dish had already been widely adopted all over western Europe.

The best I can do in accrediting any of the history of macaroni and cheese to my fatherland is to offer a few bits of interesting trivia. For example, Thomas Jefferson served it at an official White House dinner in 1802. The boxed version of the dinner was introduced in the States during the 2nd World War and became a staple for families struggling to cope with food rationing, thus propelling it into instant popularity.

I grew up on the stuff out of a box, as did every kid I knew. I loved it at the time. In fact, I pretty much lived on the bent little noodles for the five or so years it took me to earn my four-year degree. Now, however, I can't imagine eating that weird powdered cheese that smells like feet and tastes not unlike feet.

Don't get me wrong; I really love cheesy noodles. In fact, I had them for lunch today.



Gratin de Macaronis et de Fromage

(A French name makes them sound all fancy and stuff, don't you think?)

150g small pasta shells
50g butter
20g flour
300ml milk
150g cheddar, grated
150g gruyère, grated
3 Tbsp panko bread crumbs

Preheat your oven to 180ºC.

Begin by boiling the shells. Remove them from the water when you judge them to be about 1-2 minuets from cooked. Rinse lightly.

In the meantime, make a cheese sauce. In a small pot heat the milk to near boiling, but do not let it boil. Melt the butter in a second saucepan on medium heat. When it begins to foam, add the flour. Stirring constantly, cook the flour until it is a light golden color. Using a whisk, stir in the hot milk and cook until it thickens. This should only take a few moments.

Reduce the heat to low, and, still stirring constantly, add the cheddar a bit at a time until it is all incorporated. Remove from heat. Stir in the cooked shells.

In an oven-proof dish, alternately layer the shells and a sprinkle of gruyère. Top with the last bit of gruyère and the bread crumbs.

Bake 25 minuets, or until hot throughout. Grill (broil) until brown on top. Cool 10 min before serving.

One note: panko are Japanese-style bread crumbs. They are flaky and make a delicious, crunchy crust. If you can't find them, regular breadcrumbs will work just fine.