Happy October, season of gourds, goblins and gooey comfort food.
Hot dogs and onions were signs of the high life in the McGill student ghetto in my day. Trudging home, along an icy Pine Avenue, planning what we’d add to our beloved Kraft Dinner made us immediately toasty. If we could scrounge the cash for cheap vino, it was living large. To this day, the sight and smell of that neon orange gluey shit delivers me right back to hangover hell.
I’ve never smoked crack but KD has crazy ass addicts. Otherwise sane people I know and respect might claw you if you tell them you’re a KD hater. The sight of the box will turn kids, those same lugs you think you’ve convinced to eat broccoli, into zombie morons.
I’m not a purist. Flip a red licorice strip in front of my face and I’ll jump you.
Simplicity, however, is half the charm of Kraft Dinner. Finding an alternative with a ton more taste does NOT require a diploma.
You’ve got the milk, butter, and water boiled for noodles, if that’s what you can call those limp sticks.
All you need is the real cheese. Old cheddar is our favourite but try your own versions.
Then come back and tell me KD is still king.
Easy Cheesy Macaroni
There is nothing fancy about this recipe.
You can add things to it if you want to shock your system with broccoli and other greens like basil.
I add bacon and roasted cherry tomatoes to mine.
Makes 4 servings.
I usually double it as my kids love it for school lunch the next day.
WHAT YOU NEED:
1 ¾ cup macaroni
3 tablespoons butter
¼ cup flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp dry mustard
½ tsp black pepper
¼ tsp paprika (and some for dusting at end)
2 ½ cups skim milk
3 cups grated old cheddar
WHAT YOU DO:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Boil the noodles according to package directions.
- Drain, rinse with cool water, and set aside.
- Over medium heat, in medium pot, melt the butter.
- Add the flour, salt, dry mustard, pepper, and paprika.
- Stir over medium heat for a minute or so.
- Add milk.
- Whisk constantly for about 10 minutes, over medium heat until the sauce thickens.
- Remove from heat. Add 2 cups of the cheese, stirring until melted.
- Pour the cheese sauce over the noodles and toss gently until all noodles are covered.
- Add half the noodles to a two quart greased casserole dish.
- Sprinkle on one half of the remaining cup of cheese.
- Add the rest of the noodles.
- Sprinkle on the rest of the cheese, and dust lightly with paprika.
- Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until cheese is bubbling.
If you have bacon and cherry tomatoes in your fridge, cook up about 8 slices until almost crisp. Cut your tomatoes in half. Remove the casserole 10 minutes before done, add cooked bacon and tomatoes, and return to oven for final minutes of roasting. Both ingredients add fantastic flavour but most kids are cool with ketchup, if dressed up noodles are a turnoff.
If you plan to double this, you will need a bigger casserole dish or a deep lasagna pan. Don’t count on leftovers unless you have your lunchbox containers handy and squirrel away some for the next day.
Come on KD lovers. Let me have it.
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