Mac & Cheese Pies Recipe

• 2 1/2 c unbleached flour
• 3/4 c unsalted butter
• 1/4 c shortening (we used Earth Balance vegetable shortening)
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 6 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 10-18 Tbsp ice cold water
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 3 cups whole milk
• 1 bay leaf
• Black pepper
• Salt
• 1/2 lb elbow macaroni
• 8 oz. Point Reyes Original Bleu Cheese, crumbled or cut in small pieces
• 8 oz. Gruyere, shredded or cut in small pieces
• 1 bunch organic spinach, coarse stems discarded and the leaves washed well and drained
• 1/2 lb shiitake mushrooms
• Olive oil
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced

1. Cut butter and shortening into cubes, put in the freezer.
2. Mix flour, salt and sugar.
3. Add the chilled butter/shortening and mix with a pastry blender until the butter chunks are about pea sized.
4. It needs to be well-incorporated but not over worked.
5. Add 10 Tbsp of the cold water to the vinegar and slowly drizzle into the crust while you mix it with a spatula (avoid using your hands until you absolutely cant stand it).
6. Do this until the dough forms a ball.
7. Depending on the humidity of the kitchen, you might need more or less water.
8. The dough should be tacky to the touch.
9. Cut in half and wrap in plastic wrap and throw into the fridge.
10. Chill for at least an hourwe chilled ours the night before the event.
11. To roll out the dough, make sure your kitchen, counter, rolling pin, hands, etc etc are !
12. Let dough sit out for a few minutes, then flour your surface and rolling pin.
13. Roll dough out to about an eighth inch thick.
14. Use a cookie cutter or glass or bowl to cut circles about 6" in diameter.
15. Line a plate with parchment paper, stacking dough rounds and alternating each layer with a piece of parchment paper.
16. You can reroll dough scraps, but be very careful not to overwork.
17. You may want to chill scraps before rerolling them.
18. Let dough rounds chill in the fridge another 30 minutes or so.
19. Preheat oven to 375.
20. Ease the dough rounds into cupcake tins, pressing into sides, and trim the edges (these can be rerolled as wellsee above note).
21. Chill for 10 minutes.
22. While the rounds in the cupcake tins are in the fridge, start cooking the cheese sauce, veggies and macaroni (see filling recipe below).
23. Line dough with foil and pie weights and bake in oven for 20 minutes or until what you can see is golden.
24. Remove from oven and let sit at least 5 minutes before removing pie weights and filling with mac & cheese filling.
25. Make the roux & bechamel sauce: On low heat, melt butter in medium saucepan.
26. Once the butter is melted, begin whisking in the flour.
27. When all the flour is incorporated, continue stirring and cooking for a few minutes to activate the starch granules.
28. Add cold milk very slowly in small amounts.
29. Keep whisking until it is smooth, then add salt, black pepper, and bay leaf.
30. Simmer until it has lost its floury taste (this will take about 20 minutes), then strain out bay leaf.
31. While this is simmering: Heat a few olive oil with the red pepper over medium high heat.
32. Add the mushrooms and when they are evenly golden brown, add the spinach, the nutmeg, and salt to taste.
33. Saute until spinach is wilted and set aside.
34. Toast walnuts in a clean dry pan over medium heat for 5 minutes.
35. Remove from heat, chop, set aside.
36. Boil heavily salted water to cook elbow macaroni.
37. Cook pasta for a slightly shorter time than it says on the package since it will cook a bit in the oven.
38. Drain and return to pot.
39. Remove the bechamel from the heat and gently blend in the cheese.
40. If the cheese doesnt seem to be melting sufficiently, you can return the pan to very low heat, but watch it carefully and remove as soon as the cheese is melted.
41. Add spinach, mushrooms, and macaroni and mix thoroughly.
42. Spoon into pre-baked cupcake-sized pie shells.
43. Top with toasted and chopped walnuts.
44. Bake for 10 minutes at 450.
45. If theres any leftover filling it can be baked in a casserole dish sans crust.
46. Serve with slice of Granny Smith apple as garnish.

flour, unsalted butter, shortening, salt, sugar, apple cider vinegar, water, butter, flour, milk, bay leaf, black pepper, salt, elbow macaroni, reyes, gruyere, organic spinach, shiitake mushrooms, olive oil, ground nutmeg, red pepper, walnuts, apple

Taken from www.chowhound.com/recipes/mac-andamp-cheese-pies-27675 (may not work)