Who cries at mac and cheese?

Mac n’ cheese, or macaroni gratin, is a staple in Haiti. Sometimes they make it with chicken in it, which is a delicious addition and a great way to use up leftovers. I initially had tried Amanda Hesser’s grandmother’s recipe for mac n’ cheese but found it bland and wanting – perhaps because I am hell and gone from a Mennonite farmers’ market for country ham and greenmarket-quality tomatoes and thus could not "weep with pleasure" when I ate mine, although it was pretty good.

So, after falling off my chair laughing at Amanda’s purple prose and horror of everyday ingredients (“Regular” butter! As opposed to what, Amanda? “Cheese from the supermarket”! Oh, the shame! How could you eat cheese that wasn’t raised on a sustainable practices farm in upstate New York run by a former investment banker!), I made some modifications that perhaps even the Princess of Fairway and those of us who shop at Pathmark could manage.

Mac n’ cheese that has some forkability to it and some taste requires some key elements: bigger pasta and a blend of cheeses – one for flavor, one for meltability and good Parmesan (no subs for the latter). It is nice with Amanda’s preferred ham and tomatoes, or with tuna and peas. Go nuts. This is also why I pumped up the béchamel from the original recipe – the bigger pasta plus ingredients requires a bathing in the sauce. And for all of you pasta nitpickers - in Jersey, everything is macaroni. So there.


Macaroni and Cheese (adapted from Amanda Hesser’s grandmother Helen Getz and printed in her book Cooking for Mr. Latte):

3 T butter, plus some extra for the dish
3 T flour
3 cups milk (at least 2% fat - I had trouble getting skim milk to thicken into a béchamel)
2 cups uncooked ziti, rigatoni or other tubey pasta (I use whole-wheat)
1 cup grated Monterrey or pepper jack cheese, plus ¼ cup for the top
1 cup grated extra-sharp cheddar or smoked cheddar
½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 cup leftover cubed ham, pulled chicken or drained canned tuna, lightly flaked but still chunky [optional]
1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes without seeds, drained canned tomatoes or peas (thawed if frozen) [optional]
1 cup coarse bread crumbs (I neurotically hollow out baguettes when I use them for sandwiches, so instead of the dog getting the hollowed-out bread, I toasted it in the oven when it was preheating and then whizzed it in the little food processor to make crumbs)
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
¼ tsp paprika
1 garlic clove, lightly smashed
Fresh ground pepper and salt

Preparation: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a deep casserole dish. Boil pasta until al dente (6-7 minutes – you don’t want gloppy, wimpy pasta…it should have that thin raw ring around it when you bite into it) and drain, keeping warm. Mix Parmigiano-Reggiano with breadcrumbs.

Make sauce: Melt butter until foamy over medium heat. Whisk in flour one tablespoon at a time, making sure each one is thoroughly incorporated. Cook until it’s dark gold and no longer smells raw. Slowly add milk, whisking all the while. Add garlic clove. Bring to a simmer and keep whisking, but pause every now and then to let it thicken. When it’s ready, it should lightly coat the back of a spoon but still be loose. Remove garlic clove and add cayenne pepper, paprika and some black pepper. Add in Monterrey Jack cheese and whisk thoroughly to incorporate. Add cheddar and do the same.

Assemble and bake: Fold in pasta, then other ingredients. If using canned whole tomatoes, squeeze with your fingers into small pieces. Sauce should still be fairly thin but clinging to ingredients. Taste and check salt and other seasonings. Pour all into casserole dish. Sprinkle Parmigiano breadcrumbs evenly over surface and then sprinkle rest of Monterrey Jack. Grind some pepper on top and bake about 30 minutes, until brown and bubbly on top.

Serves 4-6, as a side or main dish.