Real Mac 'n Cheese

A few weeks ago, I blogged about certain kids' cookbook authors who endorse hiding vegetables in food. Not a bad idea, but don't commit culinary atrocities. I think putting pureed chic peas in mac 'n cheese ruins it, sorry Missy! One of the loveliest things about mac 'n cheese is the silky texture of the cheese sauce. This recipe makes a luxurious one. Don't skimp on the hot sauce either, it really adds another dimension. Don't be afraid; this is not complicated. Get a good whisk ready! I like serving this with steamed broccoli florets; no more than 6 minutes please!

Get your kids to help you make this. Mine had fun weighing the cheese and grating the nutmeg. Of course, licking the pot is the most fun.

Real Mac 'n Cheese
(adapted from an ancient NYT recipe that I can't find online)
Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 12, feel free to halve the recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 cups diced onion
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup unbleached flour
• 1 quart low-fat milk
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 24 ounces grated low-fat aged Cheddar cheese, or a mix of cheeses (I added local farmer's market cheese and it was excellent)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon hot-pepper sauce
• 16 ounces whole wheat elbow macaroni, cavatelli, penne or rigatoni
• 4 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano

Preparation:

1. In a deep saucepan, cook onion in butter over low heat until onion is soft but not browned. Stir in flour. Remove pan from heat, slowly add milk while whisking. When thoroughly blended, return to medium heat and cook, stirring, until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat, and whisk in mustard and 20 ounces Cheddar cheese, salt, pepper, nutmeg and hot-pepper sauce. It will be lumpy at first, but have faith, it will come together.
   
2. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to "al dente" directions. Do not overcook! Drain, return to pot, add cheese sauce and stir until blended. Taste and adjust seasonings.
3. Spoon mixture into two 9-by-13-inch baking dishes. Top with remaining Cheddar cheese and the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Refrigerate until needed. To serve, allow dishes to return to room temperature, heat oven to 400 degrees, and bake about 20 minutes, until mixture is hot, bubbling and golden.
   

Soup for Lunar New Year

Dumpling soup is traditionally served on Lunar New Year in many Asian countries. It’s such an easy soup to make that I make it whenever it’s cold and I want a quick and yummy soup. Trader Joe’s Thai dumplings are particularly flavorful so I do not recommend substituting another type of dumpling unless you are ready to add much more seasoning to the soup.

Serves 4-6 people a dinner-sized portion

Ingredients:

• 2 containers Trader Joe’s Free Range Chicken Broth
• 2 bags Trader Joe’s Thai shrimp or vegetable dumplings (I like using one of each)
• 1 bag Trader Joe’s organic spinach
• 4 scallions, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, crushed (optional)
• 3 cloves garlic, finely minced (optional)
• Trader Joe’s low-sodium soy sauce
• Trader Joe’s toasted Asian sesame oil

Preparation:

1. Empty broth into 4 quart pot, cover and bring to a boil.
2. Add dumplings all at once, cover and return to a boil. Remove lid and lower heat to medium to gently boil dumplings. Do not vigorously boil or they will fall apart. Cook 7-8 minutes only.
3. When dumplings are cooked, add bag of spinach, stir and cook about 1 minute just until spinach is wilted.
4. Ladle dumpling soup into bowls and top with a heaping teaspoon of scallion or combine the scallion, sesame seeds and garlic in a small bowl and pass around as a topping. Pass around small bowls of soy sauce and toasted sesame oil for each person to season their bowls as desired.

Hot Stuff

Let's play stump the chump. What the hottest chili pepper in the world? No, it's not the Habanero or Scotch Bonnet, it's called bhut jolokia and "has been eaten in northeast India for centuries" according to the The Wall Street Journal article last weekend entitled The World's Hottest Chili. It is basically unknown in the rest of the world, at least until now. In laboratory tests conducted by the Chile Pepper Institute of New Mexico State University, it measured in at over 1 million Scoville Heat Units. That's hot stuff!

Can we actually eat this and will it be coming to America? Yes, but not many people would be able to handle this kind of heat. It's already available online in powdered form at www.burnmegood.com. I know I'm going to have to try some just out of curiosity. A word of warning if you want to try it, wear rubber gloves and a mask and don't touch your eyes or nose.