I’ve been waiting to post this one for a while now.  I didn’t want to let the cat out of the bag yet.

I don’t share all that much about my personal life on this blog.  It’s about the food for me.  But, I feel strongly about this one, so I figured I would share it with all of you, my friends through the internet.

Some of you may know that I had been traveling cross country the past few months, interviewing at several different places for my final, real, grown-up job.  Hectic?  Just a smidge.  After going through all this training (ahem, student loans galore….), I wanted to make the right decision when it came to finally settling down somewhere for a while.  Get my roots, you know?  And after some pretty extensive turmoil over the past four years or so of my life, I was ready to finally go ahead and get my big girl pants on….find a job…negotiate a contract…uproot myself (again) on my own (with a package deal of one fat orange cat, one petite and prissy black cat, and one lovable, sweet sweet boxer..) and start the next phase of my life.

And, so I did.  I’m moving to Milwaukee, friends!  So, starting in July, expect a lot more recipes that call for beer and/or cheese.  I’m going to a great practice with great people, and I will get to do my dream job…everyday.  It’s rare that opportunities like this come up for people in my field, so I am running with one.

To celebrate, I wanted to share a recipe with cheese.  Lots of it.  Something comforting.  Something rewarding.  I indulged at the market with the truffle oil.  I had passed by the white truffle oils several times, giving them a sideways glance and wondering what all the fuss was about.  And, as in fuss, I mean a small bottle costing nearly $20.  My grocery bills are exorbitant enough for one person (I mean, sometimes it’s seriously embarrassing with the amount of food I bring home..for one person.) so I never went for it.  But, with the contract officially signed and sent off now, I figured I should celebrate.  So I bought the big bottle.  Big girl (fancy) pants, right?

A few things about this recipe: I think I may have used a little too much truffle oil, so I am tweaking the recipe here for you.  The flavor is great..it’s a little hard to describe: earthy, savory, a little salty…but definitely fancy.  I also used Dijon mustard in the original recipe, but I would also omit this as well the next time I make this (so I omitted it for you here). The cheese combination melted beautifully.  I used the panko because I prefer that over bread crumbs any day, but feel free to use whatever topping you like.  I decided to broil the mac and cheese instead of baking it because I prefer the texture of a creamy stove-top-like one over a baked version.

And so what did I do?  I poured myself a nice glass of wine, made a side salad, ate something totally unhealthy for dessert, and enjoyed this fancy-pants mac and cheese to celebrate my new transition into being a grown-up.

White Truffle Macaroni and Cheese

Servings: approximately 8

Ingredients

1 cup panko

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1-2 tablespoons white truffle oil (to taste)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons flour

2 cups half and half

8 ounces white cheddar cheese, grated

8 ounces Fontina cheese, grated

Salt and pepper, to taste

8 ounces elbow macaroni (or your personal favorite type of pasta)

Green onions, chopped, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees (this is considered broiling).  Generously spray a 2.5-quart casserole dish with cooking spray.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the panko, Parmesan and 1 tablespoon white truffle oil (if using less white truffle oil overall, use about 1/2 tablespoon here), mixing until combined.

3. In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. (If you are short on time, it might be helpful at this point to get your water boiling for the macaroni.)

4. Add the flour and whisk continuously until the mixture forms a thick paste, about a minute or so.

5. Slowly whisk in the half and half until smooth (some lumps may remain-that’s ok).

6. Bring the mixture to a simmer and let cook, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes.

7. Using a wooden spoon, slowly add the cheeses and stir until completely melted.

8. Add the remaining truffle oil and salt and pepper, to taste.

9. Meanwhile, cook the macaroni as directed on the package.  Once cooked, drain the pasta and add it to the cheese sauce.

10.  Evenly distribute the macaroni into the prepared casserole dish and top with the panko mixture.

11.  Broil until the panko topping is lightly golden, about 3-4 minutes.  (Watch it carefully so that it doesn’t burn!)  Top with green onions (if using) and serve immediately.

Source:  Adapted from Leites Culinaria.

This is one from the archives.  Seriously.  How could I neglect a fantastic mac and cheese recipe that can easily be made on a weeknight AND adapted in just about a million different ways? I’m hanging my head in comfort-food shame.

I was in this amazing kitchen store in the downtown Hanover area, and I happened to stumble upon a great cookbook…all about macaroni and cheese.  Feeling a little indulgent, I went ahead and treated myself to a copy (since I was salivating over pretty much every recipe in the whole book)….and….went ahead and stopped on the way home from the store to buy the ingredients from one of the first recipes in the book.

As I said, this mac and cheese comes together in a snap (making the pasta itself is the longest part).  The crème fraîche adds a lot of creaminess to the dish (look for it in the specialty cheese section or in the dairy aisle of your specialty grocery store…if you can’t find it, some people suggest using Greek yogurt as a substitute.  I never have used this myself.)  I ended up using Emmenthal cheese (think Swiss cheese-like), but you could use anything you want: Gruyère, Comté, or Appenzeller.  Add some spices or fresh herbs in there to make it your way.  I have already posted another mac and cheese version, but, really, can you have too many?

Ah, there’s nothing like the ultimate in comfort food, is there?

Creamy Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese

Servings: 4

Ingredients

12 ounces macaroni (whatever shape you like)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup yellow onion, minced

12 ounces Emmenthal cheese, shredded

4 ounces crème fraîche

Pinch of nutmeg

Salt and pepper, to taste

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta as directed until it is al dente, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

2. Return the pasta to the saucepan immediately.

3. Add the garlic, onion, and cheese to the top and mix lightly to coat.

4. Add the crème fraîche, nutmeg, salt and pepper, and butter, stirring well.

5. Add 1/4 cup of the hot cooking liquid to the mixture and stir until the cheese is thoroughly melted, adding more hot water if needed.

6. Stir the mixture until smooth and creamy.  Serve immediately.

Source: Barely adapted from Macaroni and Cheese by Marlena Spieler.

I’m relatively new to the blogging world.  New to who’s who in the blogging world, the traditions, the etiquette, and the community. At first, I was incredibly intimidated by the other bloggers out there-there’s so much talent, so much experience, and so much genuine love, and I was hoping I could keep up with it all.

But, there have been a few bloggers who have welcomed me whole-heartedly into this part of the world, and Josie, from Pink Parsley, has always been one of them.  I’ve grown to love Josie’s blog, seeing her fantastic rendition of many Southern classics, her classic and inviting photography, but, best of all, feeling like I know her when I have never met her in person.  Josie has an incredible love for her family, and it shows in the posts she writes and shares about being a mother and celebrating the lives of her daughter, Caroline, and her husband.  I was so happy when Josie announced that another bundle of joy was going to be soon joining her life…and this time, it would be a little boy.  You can feel her joy emanating from the words she writes about it.

When Annie, the hostess, asked me to be part of Josie’s virtual baby shower I was honored, because to me, Josie epitomizes what it means to be a “good” food blogger.  Love for food, love for authenticity, love for capturing the “emotion” of the food, and love for being herself by telling her life story through her recipes.  Josie has been a rock of support for many food bloggers out there-she’s been a great blogging friend.

As part of the “shower”, we were asked to contribute a dish that we would love to have at an actual shower (and, even though we are not all in person, we are still all celebrating for Josie!).  I wanted to put a little bit of a Southern swing to my contribution in honor of Josie, and, for some reason, Southern food (to me) equates with the ultimate comfort food.  Which basically equals macaroni and cheese.  But I wanted it in a portable, shower-friendly food…and I tried to up the flavor and creaminess factor by adding in some Boursin cheese along with the classic white cheddar.  And, to add a little bit more to the cheesiness (no pun intended), I topped it with a little parsley, also in honor of Pink Parsley. This recipe makes about 8 muffin-sized pies, but I was thinking that you could convert it to a mini muffin pan and decrease the baking time for a true finger food/larger get-together.  I thought these turned out incredibly well-the Ritz cracker crust was heavenly, and the addition of the Boursin cheese definitely made these little pies extra creamy.

While we are not all there with you physically, Josie, know that we love you and cannot wait to meet the little man!

For a round-up of other drool-worthy contributions (by amazing and supportive bloggers) to Josie’s virtual shower, please check out Josie’s and Annie’s (our lovely hostess with the mostest!) websites:

Pink Parsley Catering

Annie’s Eats

Mini Mac and Cheese Pies

Servings: 8

Ingredients

1 and 1/2 cups Ritz crackers, crushed**I used one whole sleeve and used my food processor to crush the crackers

2 cups white cheddar cheese, grated and divided

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

4 and 1/2 cups cooked elbow macaroni (about 8 ounces uncooked)

One 5.2-ounce container of Boursin Garlic and Herb cheese

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold

2 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup sour cream

1/4 teaspoon salt

Pinch red pepper flakes

Parsley, for garnish, optional

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Generously spray 8 cups of your muffin pan with cooking spray.

3. In a large bowl, combine the crushed Ritz crackers, 1 cup of the shredded white cheddar cheese, and the melted butter, mixing well until the mixture holds together and resembles coarse sand.

4. Divide the mixture among the 8 muffin cups and, using your fingers or the back of a spoon, firmly press the crust into the bottoms and up the sides of each muffin cup.

5. In another large bowl, combine the cooked (and still hot!) macaroni with 1/2 cup of the shredded white cheddar, the Boursin cheese, and the butter, mixing well.

6. In a small bowl, combine the eggs, milk, sour cream, salt, and red pepper flakes, mixing well.

7. Add the egg/milk mixture to the cooked macaroni, mixing until all the ingredients are melted and smooth.

8. Place about 2-3 tablespoons of the macaroni mixture into each muffin cup (you will probably have a little leftover macaroni-I did.  Save this and bake it separately, if desired.)

9. Top each muffin cup with the remaining white cheddar.

10. Bake the mac and cheese pies until lightly golden on top, about 20-25 minutes.

11. Let cool slightly before removing from the muffin pan, garnish with parsley, and serve immediately.

Source: Adapted from The Deen Bros. Take it Easy, via Epicurious.