Crab meat mac and cheese
Serves 8 to 10
Serves 8 to 10
1 pound pasta
1 quart half-and-half
1/4 cup cornstarch slurry (1/4 cup hot water mixed with 4 heaping teaspoons cornstarch)
8 ounces mushrooms, thinly sliced, roasted (optional)
7 ounces Irish Cheddar, grated
7 ounces Fontina, grated
4 green onions, chopped
1 pound crab meat (see variations below)
1/4 teaspoon Creole seasoning, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
1/2 cup brioche bread crumbs (or Panko)
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano
Dash of Creole seasoning for top
Preheat broiler.
Boil pasta in lightly salted water to al dente or desired doneness. Drain very well. Toss with a teaspoon or two of olive oil and place back in pot or in a large bowl. Keep warm.
Place cream over medium-low flame and bring just to simmer. Vigorously whisk cornstarch slurry into cream until smooth and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add cheese, a handful at a time, whisking until completely melted and smooth.
Place crab in a single layer atop parchment paper and place in a 200-degree oven for about 2 to 3 minutes, no longer, to heat and remove moisture.
Place crab, green onions and mushrooms in a bowl and toss with seasoning. Add to cheese sauce and stir until incorporated.
Add cheese sauce to pasta in bowl. Gently toss until all pasta is covered with sauce.
Scoop mac and cheese into well-greased 13-by-9-inch glass baking dish. (Alternately, place in single-serving, well-greased 2-cup ramekins, if desired.)
Sprinkle with bread crumbs and Romano cheese. Place under broiler for 15 to 20 seconds to brown the topping. Watch carefully so it does not burn.
Roasting mushrooms removes moisture, making them a great addition to cream sauces.
South Louisiana variations:
Proteins should be cooked before adding them to the cheese sauce. All have moisture in them, especially seafood, which can release a lot of water when cooked. To ensure the seafood and meats are warm and dry before adding them to the mac and cheese, lay each on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and place it in a 200-degree oven for 3-4 minutes, no longer.
Crab: If using commercially packaged crab, which can be very moist, place in a colander and let it sit in the sink for a few minutes. If very moist, gently squeeze out as much moisture as possible without crushing the lump crab.
Shrimp: 1 pound peeled shrimp. It's great to use shrimp from a seafood boil, but if that's not available, boil them in salted water with 2 teaspoons of liquid crab boil. Bring water to a boil. Add shrimp. Bring water back to a boil and then turn water off and let sit for 3 to 5 minutes or until shrimp are done. De-vein and rough-chop.
Andouille: 12 ounces sausage, cut into bite-size or smaller pieces.
Crawfish: 1 pound peeled crawfish tails, preferably cooked in a crawfish boil, de-veined. If large, rough-chop.
Andouille mac and cheese. (Photo by Ann Maloney, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Here is an alternative mac and cheese made with a blonde roux and sharp cheddar. It is good without a protein, but we tried it with andouille and shrimp and enjoyed it with both.
Andouille mac and cheese
Serves 10 to 12
Serves 10 to 12
1 pound small rigatoni pasta, cooked al dente
12 ounces andouille sausage, cut into bite-size pieces
2-1/2 cups heavy cream
6 tablespoons butter, divided
3 tablespoons flour
7 ounces fontina
8 ounces sharp cheddar
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
6 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped
Creole seasoning, if desired
Preheat broiler to high and lightly grease a 9-by-13 baking dish.
Make a roux by heating 3 tablespoons of the butter and flour in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring, until thick and smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes, just until it begins to darken.
Heat 1/2 cup of cream, add to roux and quickly whisk until well blended. Add remaining cream to the pan and bring to a simmer.
Cook, stirring until mixture thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. Add grated cheese by handfuls, whisking continuously until smooth, about 5 minutes. Add seasoning and whisk.
Place warm pasta in big bowl or pot. Add andouille. Pour in cheese sauce. Gently mix until pasta is full coated.
Adjust seasoning to taste.
Ladle mac and cheese into baking dish.
Place bread crumbs and remaining tablespoons of butter in a bowl and heat in microwave for 30 seconds. Stir and check, heating for a few seconds each time, until light brown and crisp. Stir in parsley. Sprinkle mixture evenly atop mac and cheese.
Place under the broiler for 10 to 15 seconds, check and continue until golden brown. Watch carefully to prevent burning.
Serve immediately.
This kid-friendly mac and cheese is made with Velveeta and cheddar. (Photo by Ann Maloney, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
If your kids -- or the kid in you -- wants an orange and easy mac and cheese, without the slurries and roux and without all of that whisking, this one might do the trick. Here, we let Velveeta do some of the work. We bought good quality cheese and cheddar and then tossed in a bit of the processed stuff.
It's a trick chefs use when making mac and cheese for "family meals," which is what restaurants call the food served to staff.
"I'll be honest with you, I don't know anybody who does not like Velveeta shells and cheese," Thibodeaux said. "If it's around, you're going to take a bite, you're probably going to take two bites."
He tells this story about one restaurant where he previously worked: "We didn't serve American cheese, but we had it on hand just for family meals. We would just heat up heavy cream in a big old pot and let it boil really good and then reduce down slightly. Then, we'd just take singles and throw them in. And something about that American cheese does the same thing and kind of acts like a stabilizer. After putting the American in there, you can come back with any cheese you wanted and add.
"There's something there about that cream and American cheese working together. I don't even know if I want to know what it is. I just know that it works," he said. "It just makes that sauce more forgiving."
Kid-friendly mac and cheeseMakes 10 to 12 servings
1 pound shell or elbow macaroni, cooked al dente
2-1/2 cups half and half
8 ounces Velveeta, cut into small pieces
7 ounces sharp cheddar, grated
1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-by-13 baking dish.
Place cream in pot and bring to simmer. Add cheddar and Velveeta. Allow it to sit for a few minutes over low heat, then gently stir until cheese melts.
Pour cheese sauce over pasta and mix until well-coated.
Pour mac and cheese into prepared pan. Sprinkle bread crumbs on top, if desired.
Bake for 15 minutes.
If you want the top to be golden, run it under the broiler for about 10 to 15 seconds.
Serve immediately.
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