Gruyere Macaroni and Cheese

I ate significantly more macaroni and cheese than the average child growing up, as it was one of my dad's specialties. He would continually test out new combinations of noodle and cheese varieties, striving for the perfect velvety sauce. Mac and cheese is really the ultimate comfort food.

He passed along the crucial steps of the process to me when I first started spending time in the kitchen. This was not some "cute father-daughter bonding time" with him sweetly telling me to sprinkle handfuls of ingredients into a saute pan. Nope. THIS WAS SERIOUS. 

It was a methodical, rigid, step-by-step process. I remember him running back into the kitchen after I had been assigned 'stirring duty' for ...maybe sixty seconds? "AHHHH EVAN,  you can't stir it like THAT !! SLOW DOWN"... followed by him taking the spoon away from me and finishing the sauce himself. 

My dads 'tough love' cooking tutorials taught me that you don't mess around with macaroni if you are not going to patiently take the time to make it properly, let the cheese melt slowly, and ...AHHH DON'T STIR IT LIKE THAT!! ;]

Gruyere Macaroni and Cheese

(Makes 4 servings / or dinner for 1)

2-3 c. Gigli or Campanelle pasta noodles
1.5c. Gruyere
1/2 c. Sharp Cheddar
1 c. Ham (broccoli or green peas are fantastic veggie substitutes)
2.5 tbls of flour
2 tbls. butter
1 tbls. olive oil
1 tsp. Sea salt (for the pasta water)
1.5 tsp. Sea salt (for the sauce)
6 dashes of Tapatio

First, get the noodles going! Throw a teaspoon of salt into the pasta water.

Toss the slab of butter into your saute pan, and drizzle in the olive oil. Once the butter is melted, sprinkle in the flour. Blend the ingredients to a thick paste, then  pour in the milk.
 

Now…whisk it! Whisk it real good. (slowly) J

Once the paste is well blended, turn the burner to medium, and stir occasionally while allowing the sauce to thicken.

 

Next, add the salt, Tapatio… and the cheese! Turn the burner down a bit and just let the cheese melt, stirring only often enough to keep the sauce from sticking to the pan.
 

Once the sauce is nice and thick, throw in the drained al dente noodles, along with the ham.

Let sit for a few minutes, allowing the noodles to soak up the sauce- then serve!!