Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Following the crazed cooking bonanza of the Great Cooking Streak of '14 and Cafaux TH, I found myself in the ultimate groove. I was spitting out words almost as quickly as I was knocking out dishes, but then a work trip and lots of eating out forced an end to all that (until I finally figure out how to cook things in the hotel coffee pot). Tonight, the itch to cook became too great, and I decided to rectify things. Since autumn is finally upon us, I decided to celebrate it with not one, but three kinds of squash in a comfort food dinner featuring Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese, as well as, roasted zucchini and yellow squash.

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese
Adapted from Pinch of Yum
Servings: 6
Time: 40 minutes

One of these was a lot harder to chop than the other

2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
1 tbsp butter
Olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, & cubed
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
5 cups vegetable broth
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp salt
2/3-1 cup shredded cheese (I used Gruyére)
Scallions, chopped for garnish
Salt, pepper, and sriracha to taste

So boring and cheeseless. It looks like the lamest pasta ever, but it has a bright future.

Sauce that is practically a bisque

1. Get water boiling and cook your macaroni according to the package instructions. Drain and set aside.
2. While boiling your macaroni, sauté the onion with butter in a pan over medium heat until soft and translucent (about 10 minutes). When almost done, add the garlic and let cook for 1 minute.
3. In a separate large pan, sauté the jalapeno and red bell pepper with olive oil over medium heat until tender (about 10 minutes).
4. In a large pot, bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Add the butternut squash and let simmer until tender (about 7 minutes).
5. Drain the squash, reserving ~ 1/2 cup of the broth.
6. Combine the broth, butternut squash, milk, onion, garlic, and salt together in a blender and puree until smooth. Add additional milk to control the desired level of creaminess.  Adjust the flavor with salt, pepper, and sriracha.
7. Add the macaroni to the large pan with the peppers. Stir in the sauce and cheese until melted and well distributed.
8. Top with scallions and serve.

Much, much better.

Now this was a mac & cheese experience unlike any other. The butternut squash sauce added a richness, creaminess, and fullness that was seriously bisque-esque (fun new word!), while the peppers brought a little kick and delicate crunch. This might not be everyone's idea of a proper Kraftian adventure since the cheese itself is actually somewhat understated (although this is easily remedied by seriously upping the cheese quotient), but it doesn't have to be the star of the dish since the sauce is just that good. If you want to keep the semi-healthy nature intact but add a little more flavor and protein, I'd recommend crumbling in some tempeh "bacon" (which my store was sadly out of). After tonight, I am a lot more excited about the many delicious prospects of the fall season.

The full meal- complete with 2 more kinds of squash and Gardein "chicken"

The Hatch Chile Extravaganza: Hatch Mac & Cheese

August is hatch chile season. After being constantly bombarded by billboards and ads extolling the virtues of the hatch chile, Kevin, Nancy and I decided to see what the fuss was all about with a fancy hatch chile packed dinner. Our main course consisted of a hatch chile marinated pork chop served on top of a special hatch puree, but the real fun was in our side dish,  the staple of any healthy adult diet- MAC & CHEESE! Could the hatch chiles (along with Ron Swanson-esque levels of bacon) liven up our mac & cheese to new levels of awesome?

Well, hatch chiles, you don't look particularly different from normal chiles, but how do you taste?

First, let's talk about the hatch chile. It's a fairly mild chile (although roasting them will pump up the spiciness) that tastes like a mix between an anaheim green chile and a poblano. If you want to liven up the flavor of a meal without knocking yourself out with heat, hatch chiles are the way to go.

Hatch Mac & Cheese

Adapted from Jamie Oliver
Servings: About a week's worth of liberal eating
Time: 60 minutes

Kevin's crust comes together.

All of the bacon you have
4 tbsp butter
3 heaped tbsp flour
1/2 large onion, diced
10 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 liter milk
750 g dried macaroni or shells
Cherry tomatoes
6-10 hatch chiles, diced
250 g grated cheddar cheese
100 g grated parmesan cheese, plus more for crust
Salt and pepper to taste
Several sprigs of thyme, leave picked
Several splashes of Worcestershire sauce
Panko bread crumbs
Cayenne pepper 

Bacon: The world's most versatile meat adds both flavor and color (and clogs your arteries for free!).

1. Preheat your oven to 425 F.
2. Fry your bacon in a pan and set aside.
3. Melt the butter in an ovenproof pot or cast iron Dutch oven over low heat (the ovenproof part isn't necessary but it will save you from transferring it later). Mix in the flour and ramp it up to medium heat. Stir constantly until an aromatic roux forms (about 10-15 minutes).
4. Cook your garlic and onions in the roux until they start to caramelize and get sticky.
5. Drop in the bay leaves. Then slowly whisk in the milk.
6. Bring the mixture to a boil and let simmer to thicken. Stir occasionally to disrupt a milk skin from forming.
7. Cook your pasta in salted water as instructed by the package. Once finished, drain and toss in with your sauce.
8. Add the bacon, tomatoes, thyme, and hatch chiles. 
9. Stir the cheese in until evenly distributed then season with salt, pepper and a few splashes of Worcestershire sauce.
10. Transfer your mac and cheese to the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes. With about 10 minutes to go, top with a mixture of Panko bread crumbs, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper and parmesan cheese. Continue baking until the top is golden brown.

Mmm, crusty. Can you spot the bay leaf?

Ok, you've probably noticed by now that this is actually shells & cheese and not mac & cheese, but you can't tell me that you didn't think Velvetta Shells & Cheese was the greatest thing ever as a kid. We decided to save the macaroni for sweet art projects (and killer friendship necklaces) that Nancy will help sneak into the CAMH.

I like to think of it as mac & cheese mole people living under the seedy underbelly of the earth's "crust".

Personally, I thought the mac & cheese (Is it possible to actually write out "and" there? It just seems so wrong.) was the highlight of the meal. The hatch chiles infused it with their unique flavor, while the bacon infused it with its patented bacony awesomeness. The tomatoes provided some juicy bites, and the crust gave everything some texture. Plus, everything is surrounded by fantastic, gooey melted cheese, which is always a positive contribution to life. My only complaint is that it was a little dry. I think I overdid it on the amount of pasta, so you could either back off on some of the pasta, add more milk or completely drench everything in cheese to make up for this. Our interest in the hatch chile had definitely been piqued after our first few bites of the mac & cheese, and we were ready to dig in to the juicy pork chop that accompanied it. 

Dennis' food modeling career stays red hot. If you'd like to book him for your next big food gig, please contact me in the comments.

The meal continues with our hatch chile marinated pork tenderloin perched atop a delectable hatch and avocado puree.