Talk about cheesy! If you like macaroni and cheese, this has it all, with four different cheeses and a little kick from the chile paste that says this is a very grown-up version of mac and cheese. Incredibly creamy, this cozy comfort dish is most definitely homemade and positively not from a box! This recipe will be featured in Morton?s new cook book, a sequel to Morton's Steak Bible, which will be published in Summer 2009.
Ingredients
- 12 ounces dried cavatappi or other small hollow, ridged pasta
- 1 1/2 teaspoons melted butter
- 4 tablespoons finely diced yellow onion
- 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
- Kosher salt
- 6 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
- 4 ounces cream cheese, cut into small cubes
- 3 ounces parmesan cheese, grated (about 2/3 cup)
- 1 ounce Swiss cheese, grated (about 6 tablespoons)
- 1/2 tablespoon chile paste, such as sambal oelek
- 5 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely shredded (about 1 2/3 cups)
- 8 tablespoons Panko bread crumbs (about 1/2 cup)
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Drain but leave
a little water on the pasta to keep it moist. Reserve another 1/2 cup of pasta water
to thin the sauce. Return to the cooking pot and cover to keep warm.
3. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the onions for
about 1 minute or until tender. Add the cream and bring to a simmer. Stir in the
cheddar, cream, parmesan and Swiss cheeses and cook, stirring, until the cheeses
melt and are fully incorporated into the cream. Let the sauce reach a simmer and
stir in the chile paste. You will have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce.
4. Remove from the heat and using an immersion blender or hand-held electric
mixer, beat for about 45 seconds until the cheeses and onions are completely
blended. The sauce will be thick; thin it with the reserved 1/2 cup of pasta water
and mix well. Season to taste with salt.
5. Ladle the sauce over the pasta and mix well with a rubber spatula. Transfer to a
deep, 2-quart baking dish and spread the pasta and cheese evenly. Sprinkle the
coarsely shredded cheese over the casserole and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake
for 20 to 25 minutes or until hot and bubbling around the edges. Serve
immediately.
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Submitted 7/16/08.
Source:
Submitted By: Trayce Zimmermann
trayce@dandcinc.com
Morton?s Macaroni and Cheese