Macaroni Cheese Puff Food

CHEESE PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a saucepan, heat the milk, butter, salt, pepper, and nutmeg over medium heat, until scalded. Add the flour all at once and beat it vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together. Cook, stirring constantly, over low heat for 2 minutes. The flour will begin to coat the bottom of the pan. Dump the hot mixture into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Immediately add the eggs, Gruyere, and Parmesan and pulse until the eggs are incorporated and the dough is smooth and thick.
• Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a large plain round tip. Pipe in mounds 1 1/4 inches wide and 3/4-inch high onto the baking sheets. With a wet finger, lightly press down the swirl at the top of each puff. (You can also use 2 spoons to scoop out the mixture and shape the puffs with damp fingers.) Brush the top of each puff lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with a pinch of Gruyere. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown outside but still soft inside.

HOME-STYLE MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain.
• Melt 1/4 cup butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Stir flour into melted butter and cook until smooth and bubbling, about 1 minute. Mix milk, cream cheese, jalapeno peppers, Dijon mustard, black pepper, and salt into flour-butter mixture; cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Mix macaroni and Cheddar cheese into sauce; pour into a 2-quart casserole dish.
• Mix bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons butter, and parsley together in a bowl; spread over macaroni and cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.

MUSHROOM CHEESE PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a cookie sheet.
• Unroll one crescent dough from the package and place on the cookie sheet. Pinch the seams together until the sheet is in the form of a rectangle. Place the drained mushrooms onto the dough and top with the grated cheese. Place the second roll of crescent dough on top, again pinching the seams. Press slightly to compact and pinch seams all the way around but leaving a slit for steam to escape.
• Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Slice into 8 individual servings and serve immediately.

CHEESE PUFFS (GOUGERES)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Combine the flour with the salt, black pepper, thyme, chili powder, and cayenne pepper in a large bowl.
• Put the milk and butter in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. When the butter melts, turn heat to low. Add the seasoned flour all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the dough forms a ball. Remove from heat.
• Separate the white and yolk from one egg, reserving the yolk for glazing.
• Put the dough into a large mixer bowl. Beat at medium speed for one minute. Then beat in one egg and the extra egg white. Beat until completely absorbed into the dough. Then add the remaining 4 eggs, one at a time, waiting each time until the previous egg is completely absorbed. After all 5 eggs (plus the one egg white) have been incorporated, the dough should be smooth and satiny.
• Add the Parmesan and Gruyere cheeses, and pepperoni if you are using it. Incorporate thoroughly into the dough.
• Use a pastry bag to pipe dough onto 2 ungreased baking sheets. You can also drop dough from a teaspoon. For tiny puffs, mounds should be about 1/2 inch in diameter. From small appetizers, mounds should be 1 inch in diameter. For puffs large enough for filling, mounds should be 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Keep the size of the puffs uniform so they bake properly. Space puffs about 1 inch apart.
• Beat the remaining egg yolk with 2 tablespoons of milk to make a glaze. Lightly brush the tops of the puffs with glaze before baking. Sprinkle tops with your Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in pre-heated oven for 10 minutes (5 minutes for tiny puffs). Reduce heat to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Bake 10 minutes more for tiny puffs; 15 to 20 minutes longer for medium or large puffs, or until puffs are golden brown. Test by removing a puff from the oven and breaking it open. The inside should be baked through. If it is still doughy or wet, bake another 5 minutes.
• Remove pans from oven and leave puffs on pans until cool enough to serve.

MACARONI-CHEESE PUFF

Steps:

• In a sauce pan, combine milk, cheese and salt.
• Stir over low heat until cheese melts.
• Stir about half the hot mixture into the egg yolks.
• Return all to sauce pan.
• Stir in the macaroni, crumbs and onion.
• In a small mixer bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form.
• Fold into macaroni mixture.
• Bake in an ungreased 1 1/2 quart souffle dish in a 325 degree oven for about 1 hour or until knife inserted off center comes out clean.
• Serve at once.

MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain. Meanwhile, for cheese sauce, in a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour and pepper. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly. Add cheese, stirring until melted. Stir macaroni into cheese sauce in saucepan, stirring to coat. Cook over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through, stirring frequently. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Makes 4 servings.

MACARONI AND CHEESE WITH POTATO CHIP CRUST

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 to 375 degrees F.
• Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a large saucepot over medium heat. Add flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk in the warmed milk and bring to a boil, continue to whisk constantly. The mixture will thicken as the heat increases. Continue to stir while adding the dry mustard, nutmeg, cayenne, salt, pepper, hot sauce and Worcestershire. Stir in the 3 cups of Cheddar until it melts.
• Pour the cheese sauce over the pasta and add to a 3 quart casserole dish.
• Sprinkle the chips, bacon and Parmesan on top and bake for 35 minutes.

HERBED CHEESE PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a large baking sheet.
• In a medium bowl, mix together Parmesan cheese, Romano cheese, mayonnaise, basil, oregano, green onions and garlic.
• Separate each unbaked biscuit vertically into 3 pieces. Spread 1 tablespoon cheese mixture on each piece.
• Arrange pieces in a single layer on baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven 10 to 12 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown. Serve warm!

CAULIFLOWER AND CHEESE PUFF

Steps:

• Thoroughly wash the cauliflower and break it into florets.
• Place in a 2-quart pot with 1 inch of boiled water and cook until soft, about 10-15 minutes.
• Remove cauliflower with the slotted spoon to a large bowl and mash.
• Preheat oven to 325 F degrees.
• Combine 2 ounces of cheese, bread, mustard, mayonnaise, eggs, salt and pepper with the cauliflower.
• Pour into a greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
• Bake for 40 minutes.
• Top with remaining 1 ounce of grated cheese and place under the broiler until browned.

MACARONI AND CHEESE CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add macaroni and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• In a large bowl combine macaroni, processed cheese, mixed vegetables, mushroom soup, 1/2 of a soup can of water and sausage. Transfer to a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• Bake, covered with aluminum foil, for 20 to 25 minutes.

HOMETOWN BUFFET MACARONI & CHEESE (COPYCAT)

Steps:

• BOIL 3 quarts salt-free water in a 4-quart pot; ADD 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni; SCRAPE bottom immediately with a wire whisk to avoid sticking; BOIL macaroni for 8-10 minutes.
• POUR macaroni into colander in sink (remove all pasta from bottom of pot); RINSE macaroni and pot with cold water; ALLOW to drain.
• RETURN empty pot to a new burner stovetop over medium-low heat; ADD 2 tablespoons margarine and allow to melt, then add 1 1/3 cups skim milk (or 50% milk with 50% water), 1/8 teaspoon white pepper, 1 pinch cayenne pepper, and 1 pinch garlic powder.
• RAISE heat to medium until heated; ADD the contents of one (8 ounce) jar Cheez-Whiz (or half the contents of one 15-ounce jar), scraping all contents from jar using a flexible spatula; ADD 8 ounces shredded medium cheddar cheese.
• WHISK mixture often without letting mixture boil, until thickened and glossy in appearance.
• ADD rinsed drained macaroni; FOLD mixture together until well-blended.
• POUR mixture into greased 8 x 8 baking dish.
• BAKE at 300°F for 15 minutes.
• REMOVE from oven with oven mitts; SPRINKLE top with 1/3 cup shredded medium cheddar cheese; ALLOW to set just long enough for the cheese to melt.
• SERVE and enjoy.