Smoked Salmon Mac And Cheese Food

SMOKED SALMON MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
• Melt butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually pour in milk and continue to whisk until sauce is smooth and creamy. Simmer until sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 cup fontina cheese, garlic salt, and pepper; set aside.
• Bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil in a large pot. Add fusilli and cook for about 5 minutes. Drain. Return pasta to the pot and pour in bechamel sauce. Mix with a wooden spoon until pasta is completely coated with sauce. Gently stir in flaked salmon.
• Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish. Smooth out the top and sprinkle with remaining fontina cheese and panko.
• Bake in the preheated oven until bubbling and golden brown on top, about 25 minutes.

SMOKY MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions for al dente, then drain and set aside.
• Set up your grill for indirect heat. If using a charcoal grill, build the hot coals on one side only. If using a gas grill, heat one side only to medium-high heat. Heat a deep 12-inch cast-iron skillet over direct heat.
• Combine the cream, paprika, cayenne and hot sauce if using in the skillet. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and simmer until the cream mixture is reduced by half and thickened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the cream cheese and Gouda until fully melted. Stir in the ham and cooked pasta and continue to mix until fully combined.
• Stir together the panko, pecorino and scallions if using in a medium bowl. Sprinkle the panko mixture evenly over the mac and cheese. Move the skillet to indirect heat, cover the grill and cook until golden brown and bubbly, about 5 minutes.
• (Alternatively, you can make the mac and cheese in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet on a stovetop over medium-high heat, then top with the panko mixture and bake in a 400 degrees F oven for 10 minutes.)

CREAMY SALMON MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
• Place salmon in a 2-quart baking dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Cook salmon in the oven for 10 to 11 minutes. Salmon will only be partially cooked; it will continue cooking later. Leave the oven on.
• While salmon cooks, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add macaroni noodles and cook to al dente, 10 to 11 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• While noodles cook, place a large pan on the stove over medium-high heat and add butter, stirring occasionally as it melts. If the butter is browning, reduce heat. You want the butter just to melt, but not to start browning.
• Whisk flour into the melted butter. If it gets a little lumpy, just keep whisking until you have a smooth and creamy roux base. Cook the flour mixture for at least 1 minute, whisking regularly, and adjusting the heat if needed.
• Begin whisking milk and half-and-half into the roux, start with about half of the liquid. Whisk until well incorporated and smooth, then continue whisking in remaining milk and half-and-half until everything is well blended into the roux. Increase heat until mixture begins to bubble and thickens, then reduce heat and stir in the cheeses (reserve about 1/2 cup of grated cheese for the top). Whisk until smooth, thick, and creamy. Season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
• Stir the drained macaroni noodles into the cheese sauce; break the par-cooked salmon up into large chunks and add that to the pan as well. Stir gently to evenly distribute the salmon and coat all of the noodles in the sauce. Transfer to the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with reserved grated cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until hot and bubbly, 25 to 30 minutes.