Macaroni and Cheese

And, no, I don’t mean the kind in the blue box.  Or any kind that starts with powdered cheese or a squeeze packet of cheese.  Not that there is anything wrong with Boxed Mac & Cheese from a blue box!  My kids love it and have been eating it for years.  I remember living on it in college and adding cream of mushroom soup or a can of tuna fish to make it special.

Today, if you think that macaroni and cheese is just a kid’s dish, or just comfort food for those cold days of winter time, it might be better to think of it as pasta in a classic French sauce instead of plain old mac and cheese.  This recipe describes a classic American dish based on a classic French sauce. And you didn’t think you could be gourmet chef.

Mornay Sauce

Mornay sauce is a French sauce based on béchamel sauce, one of the 5 classic mother sauces with cheese stirred into it.  I know, a lot of fancy names but béchamel is a simple white sauce made with milk, flour, butter, onion and seasoned with salt and pepper. When you add cheese to this simple sauce, you have Mornay sauce. Besides homemade Mac & Cheese, Mornay is great on seafood and vegetables.

This may all sound way too fancy and over the top, but it really isn’t difficult to prepare and the results are far better than what comes out of the box. Does it take more time and more effort? A little, but not much more and the finished product is so much more appealing and when you look at the ingredients on the box (sodium tripolyphosphate, sodium phosphate, calcium phosphate, Yellow 5 & 6), much healthier too.

Mix the Mornay sauce with any pasta shape you like, and voila: stove top macaroni and cheese!  It’s really easy to make, and your kids will enjoy helping. Older kids will even be able to make this on their own, in not much more time than it takes to make the boxed version.

Healthier Mac & Cheese

Making macaroni and cheese yourself allows you to control how much fat you put in, in the form of cheese and dairy, and how much salt. It also lets you sneak in some vegetables, if that’s necessary in your house. If your kids already love vegetables, you don’t even need to sneak them in, just stir in whatever vegetables they like.

Classic Moray sauce is usually made with half Gruyere and half Parmesan cheese, but don’t let that stop you from trying what’s on hand or cheeses your kids love. I made my version with shredded Colby Jack.

Here is a basic recipe for Mac & Cheese and below you will find a few alternative suggestions but have fun and add your own twist to this recipe to make it your own. Be sure to let me know your favorite adaptions in the comments section below.

Cooking Tip: Don’t worry about reducing the milk too much. The first time I made this I let it thicken too much forgetting the cheese will help make it thick. You want to reduce it some for a few minutes and then add the cheese.

Didn’t have elboe macaroni but this ditalini worked just as well if not better.

Get the water boiling and pasta cooking before starting the sauce.

Cooking onions until translucent

Making a roux by adding a little flour

Add the dairy, bring to a boil and then simmer to reduce

Add the cheese, stir and watch it melt into a wonderful sauce Mornay

Add the pasta, season with salt & pepper and stir together

My daughter added a little Old Bay Seasoning to her Mac & Cheese

Nell admitted it was better than from the box. Success!

Basic Mornay Sauce for Stove Top Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup onion, minced
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups dairy (skim, 2%, whole milk, evaporated milk, half and half, cream or any combination)
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 8 oz grated cheese of your choice (more or less, depending on how much you like cheese)
• Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed sauce pan.

How to Prepare

Stir in the onion, salt and pepper, and cook over medium heat until onions have softened and are translucent.

Stir in the flour, mixing well with the butter and onions. Cook and stir for about 2 minutes.

Pour in the dairy and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.

Turn the heat down to low and let simmer until the sauce is as thick as you want it, stirring occasionally.

Off the heat, stir in the grated cheese, a bit at a time. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.

To Make Macaroni and Cheese

Cook 8 ounces of your favorite pasta shape in boiling, salted water, until just barely al dente. I usually stop cooking 2 minutes before whatever time the package directions state.

Drain the pasta well and combine with the hot cheese sauce.

Warm over low heat for about 5 minutes, just so the pasta is cooked through. Make sure it doesn’t boil, or your cheese sauce will separate.

To Sneak in Extra Vegetables

• Puree one cup of roasted butternut squash and whisk that into the Mornay sauce.  Season with a bit of nutmeg.
• Stir in one cup of pumpkin puree to the Mornay sauce. Season with a bit of sage or poultry seasoning.
• Puree one cup of steamed cauliflower and add to the sauce. Season with a little nutmeg.

For all three variations, no additional baking is necessary. Just heat the sauce with the hidden vegetables together with the pasta and serve.

Ideas for Variations

• Use jack cheese in your cheese sauce and stir in a can of drained tomatoes or Ro-Tel (tomatoes and chiles) along with a bit of chili powder and cumin.
• Stir in a cup or so of any cooked vegetable that your kids like. Cauliflower, peas, bell peppers, broccoli, green beans, etc, would all work well.
• To up the protein, stir in cooked diced turkey or chicken, or add in a some drained canned tuna.
• To change things up even more, vary the starch you use to make this. For example, you can substitute cooked white or brown rice, Israeli couscous, or even cooked barley or wheat berries for the pasta.

Kid Friendly Recipes - Burritos

Let me start out by saying making burritos is something my kids love to do. They even like to make the tortilla you make a burrito with. I’m calling this a Kids Can Cook recipe because kids like them and kids like making them. I also like to call this a “What’s On Hand” recipe. Yes, there are some traditional ingredients that typically go into a burrito like black beans or rice but that doesn’t mean you can use this dish to clean out the refrigerator.

Have some leftover turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce? How about a post Thanksgiving burrito? I know my Mexican friend would add some hot peppers to this and call this a success but then she adds hot peppers to just about everything. How about some leftover fish from the night before? Combine it with some wild rice and fresh herbs and you have a fish burrito.

So do try the recipe below for a more traditional Mexican burrito or try some of the other suggestions, but get adventuresome and experiment with lots of ingredients on hand. Great way to learn more about food combinations while making some room in the fridge.

Mexican Cuisine

Mexico is a huge country, and its many states have very diverse cuisines, so it is a bit of a simplification to talk about “Mexican food” and “Mexican flavors.” On the other hand, making foods inspired by Mexican cooking while using some authentic ingredients honors the spirit of the cuisine, if not the letter. And besides, I don’t know about you, but for our family, wrapping “regular” food in a tortilla automatically makes it exotic.

Making burritos with your kids is also great way to teach them a bit about another cuisine. Traditional burritos might only be filled with refried beans or maybe some meat, but in America, they have swelled to contain everything from seasoned rice to guacamole to bacon and eggs. Keeping the cheese to a minimum and adding a lot of fresh vegetables makes a burrito a not only a fun dinner option, but a healthy one.

Burritos are always made with flour tortillas. You can use plain tortillas from the store or make your own like my daughter Maddie did in this post - How to Make Homemade Tortillas.  Flavored tortillas made with spinach or peppers are also available in some grocery stores, so look around and find one that you like.

How to Wrap (Fold) a Burrito

Burritos are really made to be picked up, even though many people eat them with a knife and fork. I think that most people choose the cutlery route because they are afraid their burrito is going to fall apart. If you don’t wrap them correctly, they will fall apart, so here’s how you fold them so you can pick them up without worrying.

Actually, there a several ways to wrap a burrito. I did a little research on YouTube and found some very “interesting” videos of how America is folding their burritos. You want a good laugh, go to YouTube and do a search on How to Fold a Burrito.

There are several techniques, but I found it really comes down to two - Open At One End Fold and Completely Closed Fold. With either one, you want to heat up the tortilla for a few seconds in a hot pan or even the microwave if need be so it will be pliable and easier to work with. Don’t heat it up and there is a very good chance it’s going to rip.

Open Ended Burrito

These are more traditional and by leaving one side open, the burrito can be longer and slimmer and much easier to hold than those short and fat chain store versions that require eating with a knife and fork. The open ended burritos also work much better with a classic 8″ to 10 inch sized tortilla.

1. Think of the tortilla as the face of a clock. Add a strip of filling down the middle from 9 o’clock to 3 o’clock but leave a little room on the left side of the tortilla.
2. Fold the left side of the tortilla up and over the end of the strip of filling.
3. Fold the bottom of the tortilla up over the filling and pull back with your fingers, tightening up the filling and tucking the edge of the tortilla under the filling.
4. Roll the tortilla up the rest of the way, leaving it seam side down.
5. Let the tortilla rest for two or three minutes for the tortilla to mold itself to the filling.
6. Enjoy.

Big Fat Closed Ended Burritos

These are the kind you find at some of the chain Mexican restaurants like Qdobo and Chipotle. They are very big and usually start with 12″ - 14 inch tortillas. We Americans want our burritos big and filled with as much as possible. My daughter and I will split one of these for lunch if we are out doing something fun and get hungry. In fact, I told her I was writing this post and she said let’s go out tonight for a burrito even though I purchased some beautiful fresh fish.

1. Again, think of the tortilla as the face of a clock. This time add a strip of filling down the middle from 9 o’clock to 3 o’clock but this time leave room on both ends.
2. Fold both the left and right side over the strip of filling.
3. Fold the bottom of the tortilla up over the filling and pull back with your fingers, tightening up the filling and tucking the edge of the tortilla under the filling.
4. Roll the tortilla up the rest of the way, leaving it seam side down.
5. Let the tortilla rest for two or three minutes for the tortilla to mold itself to the filling.
6. Enjoy this one too.

As I said before, burritos are a great way to use up leftovers, from Thanksgiving turkey-stuffing-cranberry burritos to last night’s roast chicken or stir-fry. But, here are is a simple recipe for chicken or pork filling, just in case you’re starting from scratch.

Shredded Chicken or Pork Filling for Burritos

Ingredients

• 4-6 chicken thighs, skinned and deboned or 1/2 pound pork butt, cut into small chunks
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 medium onion, cut into small dice
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 can tomatoes and chiles, such as Ro-Tel*
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano

Place all ingredients into a medium pot. Cover and just bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the meat is cooked through.

Shred the meat with two forks right in the pan.Cook on medium-low, uncovered, until a lot of the liquid has evaporated but the mixture is still nice and moist.

Other Ideas for Burrito Fillings

• sautéed peppers and onions with leftover roast beef (fajitas)
• roasted vegetables
• seasoned ground beef
• leftover meatloaf, crumbled
• a simple salsa of tomatoes, onions, lime juice and cilantro
• refried beans
• scrambled eggs, sausage, onions and peppers (for breakfast or breakfast-for-dinner)
• seasoned rice
• chili
• fish, shrimp or lobster
• shredded cheese

Kids Can Cook Fettuccine with Simple Lobster Sauce

My nine year old helped me throw this one together. We had some cooked Maine lobsters leftover from the weekend and wanted to use them in a dish everyone would eat. I was thinking Lobster Fra Diablo but wasn’t sure my girls would enjoy it so I came up with this simple alternative.

My nine year old Maddie has Cerebral Palsy so I try to find jobs she can handle safely and still feel like she is contributing. It’s not difficult at all. She helped me get ingredients from the refrigerator, grab the necessary cookware from the cabinets, cut herbs from the herb garden, pick lobster meat from the shells, stir the pasta and set the table. All I had to do was cut and cook.

If you want to read more about how teaching your kids to cook is a good thing, check out my blog series starting with Kids Can Cook. I also built a Squidoo lens on the same topic called Teaching Your Kids To Cook.

Fettuccine with Simple Lobster Sauce

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pounds of fettuccine
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped fine
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups lobster stock*
• 2 cooked lobsters, meat from tail and legs removed and chopped into bite sized pieces
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons butter
• salt and pepper, to taste

How to Make Fettuccine with Lobster Sauce

Start by bringing a big pot of water to boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.

Heat a medium sized saute (frying) pan until hot. Add oil and when it begins to shimmer, just before the smoking point, add the onions and cook for 3 minutes over medium high heat. Add the garlic and continue cooking until the onions become translucent. Do not let the garlic burn.

Add a quarter cup of the lobster stock to deglaze the pan. Add the lobster and the rest of the lobster stock. Continue cooking until the lobster stock is reduced by half or to your desired thickness.

Add the chopped basil and parsley. Mount the butter in pieces. Mounting is where you add butter to a sauce at the end to give it texture, flavor and a sheen. It is better to cut it up into smaller pieces and add one at a time while continuously stirring. You don’t want to add all the butter at once.

Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper.

When the pasta is done, drain it and add it to the sauce, mix all together and serve.

*Lobster Stock - Not the easiest thing to find commercially and when in a hurry, not something you want to make. It is easy enough to make some decent stock with the shells and bodies of the lobster you are not using and here is a link to a lobster stock recipe but I used a product called Glace de Fruits de Mer Gold which is a fancy name for seafood stock but this stuff is more of a shellfish stock.  You can read more about it here at Lobster Stock.