I've been working on my gourmet cooking skills the past couple years and like to think I can cook any meat to perfection.

I'm looking to branch out and try my hand at other styles of cooking that aren't 100% meat... I've seen some pretty good recipes for Mac and Cheese online but wanted to get the TexAgs opinion.

I'm not above using sodium citrate...

Edit: Bacon in any recipe is also preferred.

i've had mac and cheese with lobster in it....


i've also had it with truffle shavings on it...

AggieOO makes bacon jalapeno mac and cheese that looks pretty good.

I like putting fresh Hatch Green Chili in Mac and Cheese. Not the canned crap. Got to get some fresh peppers and roast them. The more Chili the better

Sodium citrate makes some of the best mac and cheese I've ever tasted.

I'd just like to say that I find that pico is delicious on macaroni and cheese.

Bonfires recipe is ****ing awesome.

The sodium citrate recipes are almost as good and require 1/3 of the effort.

I pick and choose which route to go based on the effort of the rest of the menu.

I want to know how to do the green chile marmalade mentioned in the linked thread...

FIDO*98* said:

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https://texags.com/forums/12/topics/1887627#bottom

bonfirewillburn said:

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man I don't want to share this one.......but....


(All measurements are approx - I don't measure go by taste/touch)
1 small onion - small dice
3 Each garlic clove - minced
2 TBS Butter
1 TBS Bacon fat
1 pnch Salt
- Sweat onion and garlic down in fat over med heat


1/4 cup AP flour
-stir in and allow to cook for a couple of min, stirring constantly


2 cups Whole milk
1 pt Heavy cream

- add 1/2 liquid whisking constantly once thickened add the second half - this should still be a little lose if not add more milk/cream
-Add couple bay leafs, few grinds nutmeg, and some thyme sprigs
-cook over med low heat for 15-20 min stirring every now and then to cook raw taste out of flour


- meanwhile cook 1 lb pasta (1 gallon H2O - add salt so it tastes like the sea - per 1 lb pasta) Cook until JUST UNDER al dente
- remove sauce from heat and add 1.5 c shredded mild cheddar cheese little at a time stirring constantly


- add 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
- check flavor and season with salt and pepper to taste


-add pasta to sauce


4 e Thick cut bacon - med dice
- cook crispy fold in to pasta mix
2 E bacon - fine dice
- cook crispy - set aside


-Pour pasta into casserole dish top with cheddar cheese - bake in preheated oven at 400 - until cheese is melted and pasta is hot
remove top with bacon and some fresh thyme leaves



*edit to format


[This message has been edited by bonfirewillburn (edited 8/14/2011 8:19p).]

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That looks awesome. I guess I just decided what I'm making for dinner.

Every time I've tried to make Modernist Cuisine Mac it just doesn't taste right to me. I actually did it over Thanksgiving as a time saver and used sharp cheddar, medium cheddar, and gruyere. I ended up dumping a brick of cream cheese and a half a cup of cream in it to try and save it.

aggiespartan said:

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AggieOO makes bacon jalapeno mac and cheese that looks pretty good.

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So people DO see my FB posts!

AggieOO said:

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aggiespartan said:

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AggieOO makes bacon jalapeno mac and cheese that looks pretty good.

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So people DO see my FB posts!

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That sounds amazing. Any chance you would post your recipe?

I'll post when I'm at a computer. I'm sure one of the resident food nazis will then comment on how everything is done is wrong and there's both way it tastes good.

I used bonefire's recipe last night except I used a combo of white cheddar, parm and gruyere. I also sauteed some diced pears in butter to mix in and used prosciutto instead of bacon. It may have been the best macaroni and cheese I've ever had.

I like this one from Ina Garten: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/grown-up-mac-and-cheese-recipe.html

Tx-Ag2010 said:

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FIDO*98* said:

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https://texags.com/forums/12/topics/1887627#bottom

bonfirewillburn said:

---

man I don't want to share this one.......but....


(All measurements are approx - I don't measure go by taste/touch)
1 small onion - small dice
3 Each garlic clove - minced
2 TBS Butter
1 TBS Bacon fat
1 pnch Salt
- Sweat onion and garlic down in fat over med heat


1/4 cup AP flour
-stir in and allow to cook for a couple of min, stirring constantly


2 cups Whole milk
1 pt Heavy cream

- add 1/2 liquid whisking constantly once thickened add the second half - this should still be a little lose if not add more milk/cream
-Add couple bay leafs, few grinds nutmeg, and some thyme sprigs
-cook over med low heat for 15-20 min stirring every now and then to cook raw taste out of flour


- meanwhile cook 1 lb pasta (1 gallon H2O - add salt so it tastes like the sea - per 1 lb pasta) Cook until JUST UNDER al dente
- remove sauce from heat and add 1.5 c shredded mild cheddar cheese little at a time stirring constantly


- add 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
- check flavor and season with salt and pepper to taste


-add pasta to sauce


4 e Thick cut bacon - med dice
- cook crispy fold in to pasta mix
2 E bacon - fine dice
- cook crispy - set aside


-Pour pasta into casserole dish top with cheddar cheese - bake in preheated oven at 400 - until cheese is melted and pasta is hot
remove top with bacon and some fresh thyme leaves



*edit to format


[This message has been edited by bonfirewillburn (edited 8/14/2011 8:19p).]

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That looks awesome. I guess I just decided what I'm making for dinner.

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I finally got around to making this this weekend. I tried the original recipe which was amazing before I decided to tweak it. Substituting 50% smoked cheddar takes this recipe to the next level.

My purple and gold Tiger son-in-law cooks a lot and ran across a delicious spicy Mac & Cheese recipe while hanging out on the Tigerdroppings.com. Ingredients below, you could always add bacon of course.

Spicy Tasso Mac N Cheese with Roasted Red Peppers
by Carrie Mason

1 pound cooked macaroni
1 stick butter
1 pound Teet's Smoked Pure Pork Tasso, diced
1/4 cup flour
1 pint heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup Gruyere, grated
2 cups sharp Cheddar, grated
2 cups mild Cheddar, grated and divided
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 large roasted red peppers, diced
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon hot Cajun seasoning (I used Slap Ya Mama)



Full recipe here: Spicy Tasso Mac N Cheese with Roasted Red Peppers

ive used this recipe with a few minor tweaks on the amount of cheese used. Honestly its pretty damn good.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes-menus/how-to-make-creamiest-dreamiest-cheesiest-mac-and-cheese-ever-article

forgot to come back and post. Here's mine. I'm the type that doesn't measure much, so I'll do my best.

1 lb of sharp (i like extra sharp) cheddar
8 oz monterrey jack
3/4 block of velveeta
heavy cream
bread crumbs
bacon
jalapenos
16 oz macaroni
butter
chicken stock (optional)

cube all the cheeses and throw them into a pot cook on low heat. Add about a cup or so of heavy cream. Fry 6 slices or so of bacon until they are crisp. I'll dice up the bacon and throw it in with the cheese. Then dump all the bacon grease in too. I'll add in about 4 tbsp of butter. Dice up how many jalapenos you want and toss them in. I usually use 2-3 depending on how how they are and will leave the membrane/seeds in at least one. While all that is slowly melting (keep stirring), i'll get my water boiling and cook the macaroni to a couple minutes short of al dente. Then drain pasta and put into a baking dish. If the cheese sauce is too thick, i'll thin with some chicken stock. When cheese is melted, dump that into the macaroni and stir it well. Top with bread crumbs and garnish with some jalapeno slices on top. You can refrigerate at this point if you are making for later, otherwise, throw it in the oven for 45 mins (less if you didn't refrigerate) at about 400 degrees.

A large block of velveeta?

Yeah, I use the big block.

Excellent...going to try this for christmas eve...hope i dont screw it up.

Martha Stewart's recipe is pretty awesome! Uses Gruyere and White Cheddar. The cayenne pepper is great, and the crispy buttered bread pieces with a little cayenne on top make this really great!!!

That bonfire recipe looks good. I'm surprised it's only two cheeses though. I really like mixes that have Gouda in them.

We need a pinned post with links to threads like this. Chili, carne Guisada, steak, gumbo etc.