Black Truffle Mac n Cheese 02/11/2010 0 Comments   Check out 30 Days 30 Ways with Macaroni and Cheese for more amazing takes on this old classic. 1 lb short-cut pasta, such as Gemelli 3 oz Black Truffle Butter   1/2 cup all-purpose Flour 1 quart Whole Milk, heated 1/4 cup Brown Mustard 12 oz Wisconsin Gruyere Cheese, grated 4 oz Wisconisin Sharp Cheddar, grated 4 oz Wisconsin Fontina, grated   1 tsp freshly ground Black Pepper 1-1/2 tbsp salt 3 slices Rye Bread 1 tbsp Butter 1 tsp Garlic Salt Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare pasta according to package directions, removing it from the water a minute or two before cooking time to make sure it’s appropriately al dente. Drain pasta and set aside. While pasta is cooking, toast the rye bread. When finished, lightly butter toast, then coarsely chop and throw in the food processor. Add garlic salt and pulse until bread is crumby. Set aside.   Empty the quart of milk into one large saucepan, on medium-high heat. Stir occasionally. In another large saucepan, melt the truffle butter. Once liquid, stir in the flour. Cook for a few minutes, stirring continuously, until butter and flour are thick and creamy.  Slowly begin whisking in the hot milk until you have one great white sauce, then add the mustard and combine. Pour mixture into a large bowl with gruyere, cheddar and fontina and combine. Season with salt and pepper, then add drained pasta. Mix well, then transfer to a 13x9 casserole dish. Top with bread crumbs and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly and the crumbs are golden brown. Serve nearly immediately.   Baked Ziti 07/14/2009 1 Comment   This is one of my Italian restaurant faves, with a few tasty veggies added. I got the recipe from my new friend Eowyn, a real Italian girl who's considering becoming a veg too. I told her to consider swapping half of the ricotta for tofu (like I do in the lasagne recipe). If you use fresh spinach, just toss a bag's worth into a pan with some water, cover and steam. For either frozen or fresh, make sure the spinach is well drained before adding to the pasta.   1 pound Ziti, cooked 2 cups Ricotta -OR- 1 cup Ricotta/1 cup Tofu, mashed 3 cups Mozzarella 10 oz. Spinach, either frozen or fresh, well drained    1 16 oz. container Baby Bella Mushrooms, sliced 36 oz. Tomato Sauce (add more as needed) 1 cup Fresh Romano Cheese, grated Preheat oven to 375*. Cook pasta according to package directions, drain, and mix with all ingredients aside from Romano cheese. Place in casserole dish, and sprinkle Romano cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking for 10 minutes, until cheese is light brown and bubble. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.    Veggie Lasagne 07/01/2009 0 Comments   I took the majority of this one from Delicious Living (where I used to work), but altered it a bit. It’s really healthy and a great way to get your veggies! You can use all tofu, all ricotta, or a mixture of both, like below. 16 ounces Lasagne noodles (I use whole wheat) 1 cup part-skim Ricotta 1 cup Tofu, mashed 1 Egg 1 cup shredded Zucchini 1/2 cup Pine Nuts 1 tsp dried Parsley or Basil 1 tablespoon Olive Oil 2 cloves Garlic, minced 1 small Red Pepper, thinly sliced 1 small Green Pepper, thinly sliced 1 cup Onion, thinly sliced 1 cup chopped Artichoke Hearts 1 cup chopped Kalamata Olives 5-1/2 cups chunky marinara sauce (about 52 ounces) 2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (16 ounces) 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese Cook pasta according to directions; drain and lay flat to cool. Preheat oven to 375º. In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, tofu, egg, zucchini, pine nuts, and parsley or basil. Set aside. In a medium nonstick skillet, sauté garlic, peppers, onion in olive oil for 5 minutes. Add artichoke hearts and olives right at the end. Spread 1/2 cup marinara sauce in a 13×9x2-inch pan. Arrange four noodles lengthwise over sauce, overlapping edges. Spread one-third ricotta mixture over pasta, followed by 1-1/3 cups marinara sauce. Layer one-fourth of the vegetables. Repeat layers twice, ending with pasta. Spoon remaining vegetables over pasta. Spread remaining sauce over top and sprinkle with cheeses and a few extra pine nuts. Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake 10 more minutes or until hot and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.   The Best Mac n' Cheese Ever 06/30/2009 0 Comments   Ok, so I was watching Rachael Ray the other day and got excited when she was making what looked like a really tasty (and easy!) mac and cheese. Apparently I tuned in after the announcement that this was going to be “reuben” mac and cheese, complete with corned beef and sauerkraut (totally unnecessary). I really liked the cheese and breadcrumb additions, though, so I took the liberty of amending like so! I served with steamed broccoli. Pasta Salt 1 pound cavatappi or other short cut pasta Topping 2 slices rye bread Tiny amount of butter for toast Some green herbs (fresh parsley if you can, but dried works fine) Pinch garlic salt 1 teaspoon paprika Sauce 3 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons flour 2 cups lowfat milk 1/4 cup spicy brown mustard 1 cup Swiss cheese, shredded (try smoked for extra flavor) 1 cup Gruyere, shredded 1 cup Cheddar, shredded Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Salt water and cook pasta to al dente. While pasta cooks, toast rye bread in toaster then butter hot bread. Coarsely chop bread and place in food processor. Add herbs, paprika and garlic salt to bread and process into bread crumbs, then set aside. Heat a sauce pot over medium heat. Add butter to pot. Once melted, whisk in flour for one minute, then add milk. Season the sauce with salt and pepper. Let sit to thicken for 5 to 6 minutes, still on medium heat, then stir in mustard. Melt 2/3 of the combined cheeses into the sauce. Preheat broiler. Drain pasta and return to hot pot. Toss hot pasta with cheese sauce and coat. Transfer mac n cheese to casserole and top with remaining cheese, then bread crumbs (be sure to spread out, otherwise they might burn). Brown under broiler 3 to 4 minutes, serve.

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