11454 White Cheddar and Bacon Mac & Cheese 1 hour 30 minutes 8-10 servings Sun Feb 03 11:04:11 -0800 2008 Sun Feb 03 11:04:11 -0800 2008 American User http://www.chow.com/recipes/11454 Sun, 03 Feb 2008 19:04:11 GMT This is heavily adapted from a Tyler Florence recipe. Actually, I’ve never tried the original recipe as written- I made several changes the first time I tried it, and more the next time- you know how it goes!

Anyway, this is what I ended up with. It’s definitely not diet-friendly, but everyone sure seems to love it.

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  • Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, add the macaroni, and cook til al dente (about 8-9 minutes). Drain.
    • Preheat the oven to 400°.
    1. In a small saucepan, heat the half and half with the sprigs of thyme and the smashed garlic cloves.

    In a large, deep skillet cook the bacon til crispy. Drain off the excess fat and add the chopped onion and thyme leaves (if you really love garlic, chop up a couple cloves and add them here too!) and cook until the onion is translucent. Remove the bacon-onion mixture to a bowl and set aside.

    Add the butter to the pan and let it melt, then whisk in the flour to make a roux. Strain the solids out of the half and half and add it to the pan, whisking til smooth. Add all but a couple handfuls of the cheese and stir until the cheese is melted.
    1. In a large bowl, mix together the macaroni, sauce, and bacon-onion mixture. Add the parsley, nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a large baking dish. Toss the remaining cheese with the breadcrumbs and scatter on top.

    Bake for 30 minutes, or until hot & bubbly and the top is golden brown.

    ]]>     http://www.chow.com whirlygirly 84 Pasta/Noodles 1 lb large elbow macaroni

    ]]>     Kosher salt

    ]]>     1 qt half and half

    ]]>     2 or 3 sprigs fresh thyme

    ]]>     3 or 4 cloves garlic, smashed

    ]]>     1 lb thick-sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces

    ]]>     1 medium yellow onion, chopped

    ]]>     Fresh thyme leaves, about 1-2 sprigs’ worth

    ]]>     2 T unsalted butter

    ]]>     2-3 T all-purpose flour

    ]]>     1 1/2 lb white cheddar, shredded

    ]]>     1/4 cup parsley, chopped

    ]]>     1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

    ]]>     Fresh ground black pepper

    ]]>     1/2 cup Italian style panko breadcrumbs

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