Mac me some CHEESE!

Macaroni and cheese. Mmmm. Really, is there anything better? Well, I DON'T know as I cannot find a recipe I like!! I used to have one that I grew up on... my grandma's recipe. But my husband doesn't like it- states its too 'eggy'.  It involved two eggs, a whole brick of Cracker Barrel cheese and evaporated milk. Growing up, I loved it.  

When you get married, though, you have to adapt to the loves and hates of the family members. I make it every now and then just as a comfort reminder.  Since then, I have been on the search for THE recipe. I do make my own- I'm borrowing a picture from another blogger, Cooking Tip of the Day, as I made their version the other night.  Well, I should say I made their IDEA.

They used kielbasa in theirs, I used sausage tips. They used shells, I used traditional elbows. They also made their own sauce (roux) and I have given up on that. Mine always turns out grainy, no matter how much I whisk. So, instead,  I just grated up every cheese I could find (Monterey, Mozzarella and Sharp Cheddar), then went for it. 

Here is what I did and no, I don't have my own picture because my family ate it all. Animals. 

1. Cook almost 16 ounces of elbows (I think I used about 10 ounces. A full pound is just too much)
2. Meanwhile, cook sausage tips in a 350 degree oven until browned to your liking. Drain, then cut into pieces.
3. Place about 2 tablespoons of butter in a bowl. Pour hot, drained pasta over it. Stir (yeah baby!)
4. Add handfuls and handfuls of cheese. Stir.  Pour about 1/4 cup of milk or cream over mixture. Stir
5. Salt and peppa!!! (Pepper.. seriously, no nutmeg. what is up with that?). Mix in sausage
6. Grease a casserole dish. Pour mixture in and then top with more and more cheese.
7. Lastly, top with buttered panko crumbs. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, then gently broil the top until brown.

Delish!!!
Please share your recipes with me and if you have a blog, I'll link your goodness if you link mine!
 Happy Eating!!

Baby's Baking Bacon!

When you live with a warped stove top, you have to become creative when it comes to making food that would traditionally be fried, sauteed, etc.  Now, anyone who knows me knows I love bacon. I do- its a fact. 

What I don't love is frying it. Its messy, its a pain, and I never can get it even because of my concave stove top.

So.. I bake it. I've perfected this technique and its pretty simple. 

1. Line a baking pan with silicon baking mat
2. Heat oven to 375
3. Lay strips of bacon on the prepped pan
4. Bake in oven for 15 minutes, then remove. 
5. Flip all pieces over, then bake another 15 minutes.  Keep an eye on it toward the end to make sure its not getting burned (each oven is calibrated differently, so err on the side of caution).
6. Remove. Drain. Inhale

You're welcome.

So Latke-Like

Where has the time gone? I haven't blogged since summer! This is not acceptable! So, I'm back.. and with a double posting on a beautiful Sunday!!

I woke up this morning and was out of sorts. No real reason, really, just not feeling my chipper self. Cooking something was the answer and for whatever reason, I wanted bacon and latkes. These two would never be traditionally served together- I get that so let it go. Please.

After reading a few recipes for traditional latkes, I did what I do best and just winged it.  Started with peeling and shredding three potatoes:

I shredded in half an onion, then put the combined mixture into a sieve to drain. Took out some aggression by hand squeezing as well. Try to get as much moisture out as possible before adding in an egg, salt, pepper and about a tablespoon of AP flour:

Mmmm.  Now its time fry. 

Notice something odd here? TWO of the potato patties are in oil- the third is just hanging out in a dry pan!! This is my horrific dilemma- my stove top is WARPED!!! Its a masterful of tip the pan to get these bad boys done.. I digress.. sorry.

TADA!

Finished up and it was eaten up!! Happy Sunday! Baking bacon coming next....

A new twist on Mac and Cheese

My foodie buddies are going to hate this post. Why? Because I didn't even attempt to take the beautiful picture of the truly yummy food. I chose instead to show you the true reality of the home cook.. and it always pretty, folks. But.. boy.. is it good. I made the Tuscan Herb Sauce Mac and Cheese from the great folks at #Barilla. And it was.. incredible...

Yep, no beautiful dishes, no pretty lighting. Just the food in all its raw glory AFTER we ate. Gotta keep it real, you know? This was a true hit. Barilla Tuscan Herb sauce simmered with heavy cream (calorie fiends, read no more). Then tossed with elbow pasta, parm cheese and topped with shredded fontina. Heaven!!!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Elbows-Mac-and-Cheese-with-Tuscan-Herb-Sauce

Food doesn't always have to have the superb lighting of a stage set. Sometimes, it is just as well to show the real side and say it was good just as is.  Enjoy! :)

Quick and Easy Lasagna.. thanks to Barilla Pasta!

Lasagna is almost a sacred word in my house. My own personal lasagna takes hours to make and it is a labor of love well worth the time. However, I cannot do this dish on a regular weeknight. I'm a mom, I have teens and they would probably eat the paint off the walls by the time it was out of the oven- not to mention it would probably be close to midnight.

Thank goodness for the wonderful folks at Barilla Pasta! #Barilla.   As an Allrecipes Allstar, I was given the great opportunity to work with these folks in June and July, testing out some wonderful pasta recipes and giving my thoughts on them.

I made the Wavy Lasagna with Meat sauce tonight and it was a hit. Low work, low prep but huge on flavor.

The time it takes to boil the lasagna noodles is about the time it takes to make the filling. Check out the recipe here:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Wavy-Lasagna-with-Meat-Sauce-Fresh-Ricotta-and-Spinach

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do and keep on cooking!! More pasta recipes to come!!

Ziti, Oh, you crazy Ziti!

Anyone who knows me knows I love pasta. Stuffed manicotti, lasagna, marinara, spaghetti.. it all sings to me.

Tonight, I made a Soprano worth dish of Baked Ziti. I cannot claim the recipe as my own as my own ziti is only red sauce based. This recipe came from the great folks at Barilla Pasta, one of the best pasta makers around.

It starts out by making a bechamel sauce which, for some, may sound tricky. Bechamel is not hard but it does take babysitting.  In its simplest form, it is melted butter that has flour added to it and whisked constantly until the flour light browns.  Boiled milk is added in a cup at a time and gently whisked until a sauce is formed. From there,  cheeses and spices are added to make an unbelievable cheese sauce of which there is no comparison.

The recipe follows and the end result was delicious.  Thank you to the great folks at #Barilla for letting me be part of their campaign this June!

#Allstars- recipe to follow..
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baked-Ziti-with-Cheese

Happy Eating!!!

Mmmmmm Mazola and Carnitas!

This was no typical dinner. My recipe assignment this month was with Mazola Corn Oil and we were making Pork Carnitas with Cilantro Tomatillo Sauce (recipe to follow). Now, Mazola has been a part of my family since I was a young girl. I can still hear the Mazola commercial song running through my head- the boom boom of the drumming across the plains and the image of the lovely young woman lifting corn kernels to the sky.

Mazola's recipe for Pork Carnitas was absolutely delicious- and that is saying alot coming from my hubby!! He is a carnitas-loving guy and would be the first to say "Bleeeech" to a recipe to pass his personal review.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pork-Carnitas-with-Cilantro-Tomatillo-Sauce

 Overall, this was a really fantastic meal. Mazola Corn Oil is part of a heart-healthy lifestyle and I was thrilled they gave us the opportunity to try such a great dish. I stepped out of my comfort zone to work on roasting products-so I was thrilled with the results! I hope your family will be as well!

*I am an Allrecipes Allstar brand ambassador (a voluntary position) and I'm not compensated for my work with Allrecipes.com. Products received from advertisers are only used for experienced-based reviews on    A Wolf in the Kitchen.  The reviews, content and opinions expressed in this blog are purely the sole opinions of MrsWolfie.  To learn more about the Allrecipes Allstars program, visit Allrecipes Allstars