Friday Night for Dinner

So, I've decided to start blogging tonight.

For dinner I made Macaroni & Cheese and Roasted Green Beans. I've never cooked fresh green beans, so it was a new experience. I just sort of made it us as I went. The Macaroni & Cheese is based off a recipe The Pioneer Woman posted a few months ago. But she calls for a couple spices I didn't want in my Mac & Cheese. As a Mac & Cheese aficionado (ask my mother what food is responsible for the bulk of my existence growing up), I want to taste noodles and creamy cheese. I don't want strange flavors taking over and making me wonder why it tastes funny. Don't get me wrong, I like me some good spices. but Mac & Cheese shouldn't have a tang IMHO. So anyway, here's how you make homemade Mac & Cheese.

First off, you need a heavy bottom pot (the sauce needs to heat evenly without any hot spots to cause it to burn) and a whisk. (Note to self: I need to buy a small balloon whisk. My large one just ain't cuttin' it.)

Start by boiling water for the pasta and cooking it according to the package directions. While the pasta is cooking, continue with making the sauce. There will be a few minutes lull later where you can drain the pasta.

Before you begin making the sauce, be sure to measure everything out and have it nearby. You don't want to get to the point where you're ready to pour in the milk and then have to measure it out - the roux will burn. (Ask me how I know this.)

On an aside, a roux is a thickening mixture made from flour and fat that is the basis for many sauces and gravies.

So, you need to melt 1/4 cup butter in your pot and whisk in 1/4 cup flour. Cook over medium-low heat for five minutes, whisking constantly. Make sure to whisk every part of the roux evenly or it WILL burn. Just before it is ready, you will notice that the consistency begins to thin and it starts to take on a slightly golden color. (I said slightly. If it starts to turn from golden to brown, it is burning! Ask me how I know this.)

Pour in 2 1/2 cups milk and whisk until smooth. (Don't pour it in slowly or it will burn. Wanna hazard a guess how I know this?) Cook for five minutes until very thick. Reduce heat to low.

Grab the bowl that has 1 egg, beaten, in it. Take 1/4 cup of the sauce and slowly pour it into the beaten egg, whisking constantly to avoid cooking the egg. What you are doing is tempering the egg. If we dumped the egg straight into the sauce, the heat would cook the egg on contact. By slowly pouring a little of the sauce into the egg first, we are gradually bringing the temperature of the egg up. Now pour the egg mixture slowly into the sauce, whisking constantly. Stir the sauce until smooth.

Dump in the 1 lb. cheddar cheese you have shredded and sitting nearby and stir to melt completely. Add a bit of salt to taste. PW says not to under-salt, but having ruined a batch by over-salting, I'd rather have mine lacking in that department than not.

Now add in your cooked and drained macaroni. Don't just dump it all in. Add it in batches and stir in between additions. You may or may not need all the macaroni, and it's better to have more cheese than macaroni than not enough.

(For those who are wondering how I know all these faux pas: Yes, I have made this at least a dozen times. I mentioned before that I am a Macaroni & Cheese aficionado. I should probably amend that to say that I am a Mac-&-Cheese-ophile.)

For the green beans, I cooked them much like I do asparagus.

I preheated my oven to 400 degrees. I snapped off each green bean at the tips and spread them out on a baking sheet. I drizzled them with enough EVOO to coat, and tossed them to coat well. I sprinkled a pinch of salt and pepper and two generous pinches of sugar. Yes, sugar. It complimented the natural sweetness of the green beans well. Then I sprinkled them with paprika. I wanted a spice that would add impact without overpowering the sugar. In hindsight, I wish I had used more paprika. I sprinkled them semi-liberally, using appx. 1/2 tsp for two to three servings of green beans. Next time I will fully coat them on one side with the paprika - using 1 - 2 tsp.

Then I stuck them in the oven. I gave them about 25 minutes, but they came out a little more tender than I would have liked. 18-20 minutes would have been just right.

It was a good dinner. Brayden didn't eat the mac & cheese - predictably. He is a mac & cheese snob. He only eats mac & cheese that comes out of a blue box - and then only if it's mixed with peas. I don't ask. But me, I'm quite stuffed from eating too much. It was yummy.