Macaroni and Cheese Oven-Baked Casserole (With a Dash of Spicy)
- 2 cups skim milk (or any other milk)
- 1 cup soymilk, fortified (substituting with any other milk is fine)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons white whole wheat flour (while a healthy and delicious flour, substituting with any other flour is acceptable)
- 14 teaspoon salt (more of less to taste)
- 12 teaspoon pepper (more or less to taste)
- 12 teaspoon garlic powder (more or less to taste, alternately, 1-2 cloves of minced fresh garlic would be nice as well)
- 12 teaspoon onion powder (more or less to taste, alternately, 1 small onion diced and sauteed would be great in this dish)
- 12 teaspoon ground mustard (more or less to taste)
- 2 cups whole wheat pasta, uncooked (approximately 10 ounces, i.e. macaroni, spirals, shells, mini penne... may substitute with enriched )
- 8 ounces cheese, sliced (I use a Jack-and-Colby-combo cheese that comes in 10 slices)
- 2 ounces mozzarella cheese, grated 0R cut into small cubes (may substitute with any other creamy-textured cheese, i.e. Muenster, Provolone, Edam)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Set aside an 8x11 glass casserole dish (spray with non-stick spray, if desired).
- Cook the pasta according to its instructions and remove from heat 2 minutes PRIOR to it being fully cooked.
- Drain the pasta and rinse with cold water (to halt further cooking of the pasta).
- Drain the pasta and return to saucepan.
- AS THE PASTA IS COOKING, warm all of the milk and the 2 tbsp butter over medium-low heat.
- In a small bowl combine the flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and ground mustard.
- After the milk is heated, whisk in 1/2-1 cup of the milk, whisking until combined and no clumps remain.
- Whisk this mixture back into the milk, reduce heat to a simmer and allow the sauce to thicken (about 2-3 minutes).
- Remove from heat.
- Layer ingredients in the 8x11 dish: Add 1/2 of the pasta and 1/2 of the sauce, stir.
- Sprinkle 1/2 of the Mozzarella over the pasta and arrange 1/2 of the sliced cheese over the mozzarella.
- Repeat the steps once more (DO NOT stir the second layer of pasta and sauce unless you stir very gently, working to avoid disturbing the layer below).
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top is a golden color and the milk is bubbling (while not necessary, the dish may be covered for 1/2 of the baking time, if desired).
- The dish will continue to cook when removed from the oven.
- Letting it cool for 5-10 minutes will insure a delicious (and slightly cooled) meal.
milk, soymilk, butter, whole wheat flour, salt, pepper, garlic, onion, ground mustard, whole wheat pasta, cheese, mozzarella cheese
Taken from www.food.com/recipe/macaroni-and-cheese-oven-baked-casserole-with-a-dash-of-spicy-286730 (may not work)