Star Jones Famous To Die For Mac And Cheese Food

MACARONI AND CHEESE FROM JOHN LEGEND

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375. Generously butter a 13x9" glass baking dish; set aside. Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add salt and macaroni. Cook until aldente according to package directions. Drain, and return to pot. Add butter, and toss until pasta is coated and butter has melted; set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together evaporated milk, skim milk, and eggs. Add seasoned salt, garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; set aside. In another medium bowl, combine cheese; set aside.
• Place 1/3 macaroni in an even layer in the bottom of prepared baking dish; cover evenly with 1/3 cheese. Repeat with remaining macaroni and cheese mixture. Pour m ilk mixture evenly over contents of baking dish. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake until top layer is lightly browned, 35-45 minutes. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

"TO DIE FOR" BAKED MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Start by cooking 1 pound of elbow macaroni until "el dente", drain & set aside.
• Cut the crust off of white bread (set crusts aside for later) and line a very large baking dish with them. (I ended up needing one large 9x13 pan and another 8x8 pan to fit it all).
• Melt 8 Tablespoons of butter in Microwave then brush all over the bread. (YES this is one entire cube of butter.).
• Take the crusts & spread on a cookie sheet & put into a 200 degree oven until nice & dry. I deviated from JoAnne's recipe here and sprinked the crusts with a bit of Garlic Powder.
• Put 5 1/2 cups of WHOLE milk into your pot and don't try to make it with skim milk. You just got done brushing all the bread with one cube of butter. Don't you think skim milk is pointless by now? (Also, make the pot a large one).
• On a lower heat setting warm the milk a bit then slowly add 1/2 cup flour as you whisk to prevent lumping (you can also use another thickening agent like corn starch etc).
• Add 1/4 tsp White Pepper (you can use regular black pepper if you don't have white), 1/4 tsp Cayanne Pepper & 1/4 tsp Nutmeg.
• To the milk, flour, spice mixture you add 4 1/2 cups of White Cheddar (I used Tilamook Vintage White). Now I didn't want to shred it all so here was my conversion -- 8 oz to a cup -- so basically I just cubed up an entire two pound block of it and put it into the pot. I could be totally off but it turned out great anyway.
• Add 1 cup Swiss & 1 Cup Romano.
• Keep stirring over low to medium heat until the cheese is melted & everything is mixed creamy together.
• When it's all mixed and creamy mix in your elbow macaroni.
• Pour the mixture into the white bread lined baking dish (or dishes).
• Crumble up your dried out bread crusts to make coarse bread crumbs.
• Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the macaroni mixture.
• Put pans into a 350 degree oven for 30 to 45 minutes until bubbly & browned on top.

STAR JONE'S FAMOUS TO DIE FOR MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Directions:.
• Pre-heat oven to 350°.
• Pour milk and butter into a medium sauce pan and heat over a low flame. Slowly add each kind of cheese (except 1 oz of Sharp Cheddar and a ½ oz of Blue Cheese) and allow it to melt. Be sure to cook over a low flame and stir constantly to prevent clumping and sticking.
• While the cheese is melting, in a separate pot, cook the macaroni according to the directions (do not overcook) with a dash of salt and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
• Drain macaroni and pour ½ into a large baking or casserole dish. Add salt and pepper to taste then slowly add half of the cheese/milk mixture and stir together thoroughly. Pour remaining macaroni and cheese/milk mixture into the a 2 quart baking dish and stir well.
• Sprinkle remaining Sharp Cheddar and Blue Cheese on top of the macaroni and place in the oven. Bake until a light golden brown (approximately 20 - 30 minutes). Let stand a half hour and serve.
• You have just died and gone to heaven!

GRANDMA'S FAMOUS MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• NOTE: IF YOU DON'T HAVE SHARP CHEDDAR CHEESE, SUBSTITUTE I CUP OF THE CHEDDAR CHEESE WITH GRATED ROMANO CHEESE. MEASURE 4 LEVEL CUPS (ABOUT 14 OUNCES) OF DRY MACARONI (DON'T USE A FULL POUND). USE WHOLE MILK ONLY (STEP ONE PREP): Preheat oven to 350°F ; Lightly butter or spray a 2.8 - 3 quart casserole dish. Shred 20 ounces sharp cheddar cheese on a medium grate. Set aside approximately 1 cup of shredded cheese for the final garnish. Prepare the breadcrumb topping if using (melt butter, then toss all ingredients well). Set all aside until needed.
• INTO a large pot with an accompanying tight-fitting lid, add 12 cups (3 quarts) water enough kosher salt to season moderately; BRING to a rapid boil.
• ADD macaroni to boiling water and bring back to a rapid boil; COOK, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes; COVER pot and remove from heat; LET stand 10 minutes; DRAIN in a colander placed in sink; RINSE with hot water and allow to drain again.
• IN the previous emptied pot over a low heat setting, add the butter in tablespoons until melted; SPRINKLE in the flour and stir; RAISE heat to medium low and cook until light golden, bubbly and slightly nutty in aroma, stirring as needed (do not let mixture turn brown or you will need to wash the pot and start over!).
• RAISE heat to medium-high; GRADUALLY whisk in the milk; WHISK in the kosher salt, mustard powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper and nutmeg; CONTINUE whisking until mixture begins to steam and bubble; REDUCE heat and cook 1-2 minutes until fully thickened; REMOVE from heat and let stand 1-2 minutes.
• STIR in the sharp cheddar cheese (except the reserved 1 cup) until blended and creamy; FOLD in the macaroni and blend until creamy and macaroni is clump-free.
• POUR mixture into prepared baking dish; SPRINKLE evenly with reserved 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese; TOP evenly with combined BUTTERED BREADCRUMB TOPPING ingredients (or if not using breadcrumb topping, sprinkle with 2 tablespoons powdered parmesan cheese).
• SLIDE out oven rack using oven mitts; PLACE casserole dish in center of prepared baking sheet; SET oven timer for 35 minutes.
• BAKE until timer sounds; CHECK to make sure breadcrumbs are golden brown and edges are bubbling (if not, return to oven and continue baking); REMOVE from oven and place on cooling rack; COOL and let stand a few minutes before serving.
• SERVE and enjoy.

BIRD'S FAMOUS MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-high heat.
• Stir in flour, salt, dry mustard and pepper until smooth. Gradually stir in milk and heavy cream, stirring continuously until thickened, about 10 minutes.
• Remove from heat. Stir in cheeses (a little at a time) and mix until smooth and cheese has melted.
• In a large bowl, pour cheese mixture over macaroni, mixing well. Place mixture into a greased 9x13 baking pan. Sprinkle seasoned bread crumbs on top. Bake for 25-30 minutes.