Today was a long.. long.. day. Up at 6 AM, before the sun.. in the car on the way to work at 7AM, in new hire orientation (even though I’ve been working for going on 3 weeks at my new job) at 8AM. Fast forward through 10 grueling hours of work and thankfully today is over. There’s still laundry to be done, dishes, etc. etc. blah blah blah.. but really.. what kept me going throughout the whole day???
Like a blanket right out of the dryer on a cold morning, the promise of comfort food upon arrival home this evening, kept me going through an otherwise grueling day. Admittedly, I plan my meals out ahead of time, so I planned an easy one, figuring today would be rough. God, was I right.
That’s really one of the great things about food, though. As I get older, I tend to associate certain moments in my life with songs, scents, flavors.. Macaroni and cheese has always signified home and comfort to me. It makes me think of my mom making macaroni and cheese when I was a kid. It was a recipe that she’d only make from time to time because it was kinda time consuming.. It was always delicious (no velveeta in this recipe!) and special because it was from scratch.
Like in all things, I don’t have the patience to wait for mac-n-cheese to bake. I shortcutted this by putting my grated cheddar into a bechamel. That way there’s no need to melt it in the oven. Yay for instant gratification. I don’t put bread crumbs on top of mine, because I find them to be a generally unnecessary after thought.
It was a relatively quick dinner. I shredded a block of white cheddar, added that to a quickie bechamel sauce. Seasoned lovingly with salt, red pepper flakes, and fresh oregano. I poured that over some cooked elbow macaroni. Totally delish! And it only takes about half an hour to make with all the prep included. 😀
The Confluent Kitchen 
I certainly share your culinary sentimentality, especially toward the mac. On a cold, wet day, bechamel on elbow pasta beats pretty much anything.
Yep.. there’s just something about it that makes it my ‘go-to’ whenever I’m feeling like blech-y.
My favourite too! i sometimes add a bit of curry powder for extra punch! And yes I am too impatient to wait for it to bake as well 🙂
Hmm.. curry powder? I’ll have to give that a go!
mine is grilled cheese and tomato soup. That just says comfort/feel better/unwind to me! I also love adding a little curry powder, or once even habenero cheddar (so good. but it turns out you should warn people before serving it: http://wp.me/p1pJ8b-8i
LOL. Too funny. I am not a huge fan of the spicy, myself.. but my boyfriend is. He’d probably take a bite and get all excited.. then I’d have to make myself something else. 🙂 Grilled cheese and tomato soup are also good comfort foods. That feels more like lunch to me though, for some reason. PS – Your mac on the link you sent looks amazing.
I side with you on your comfort food analysis. There are some foods that just hit the spot, mac and cheese is one of them. You needa sit back and watch some tv with a glass of wine!
More like a bottle. 🙂
I make mine with eggs and skip the béchamel — not because I’m a-scared of a little sauce-making, but because my grandmother did it that way. She usually served it with stewed tomatoes, but I like a little ratatouille on the side. It is the ultimate comfort meal!
Hell.. if you don’t wanna make a sauce, just use a little campbell’s soup 😉 I kid, I kid.
I’ve actually never tried it with eggs. How does that work? Honestly, the bechamel thing is more of a ‘I don’t wanna wait for the oven to melt this food’ type of adaptation that I added. I’ll need more details on the inclusion of eggs. Do you just mix it all together at the end or bake it that way?
The dynamics are baffling me. Blame the wine. 🙂
Here’s the recipe.
http://kitchenslattern.com/2011/11/01/happy-all-saints-day/
You just pour a milk and egg mixture over layers of macaroni and shredded cheese and bake. It’s the same principal as making custard really. The mac and cheese is firmer than with a béchamel.
I always blame the wine. 😉
That first pic is adorable! Love it! Also am a huge mac and cheese fan. Here’s hoping your work days get shorter soon 🙂
Thanks. I’m hoping that happens soon too. Apparently they just hired someone else for my department. I hope that helps.
Glad you liked the picture! Mac and cheese is one of those things that turns me child like immediately. 🙂