Search Results for: mac cheese

Mango and Peppercorns + Vietnamese Macaroni and Cheese

March 16, 2021 by Megan 2 Comments

Mango and Peppercorns is a memoir told collaboratively from three perspectives — that of Tung Ngyuen, a Vietnamese immigrant; of Kathy Manning, an American who sponsored Tung; and Lyn, Tung’s daughter, born in Miami, where Tung and Kathy lived. It is a memoir not only of the immigrant experience (from both sides) but of food and family as well. Together, Tung and Kathy opened a successful, award-winning restaurant.

This memoir is a great reminder of the opportunities that American can provide and the successes immigrants can realize when given the right support. The alternating points of view made the story whole and demonstrated that all relationships — even those that are long-lasting and loving — have their conflicts.

Throughout the book, recipes were included. The one I chose to include may seem like an odd choice, but I loved that it embodied the combination of Vietnamese heritage and American culture shared throughout the book. This macaroni and cheese is one that Tung made for Lyn, who as a younger girl preferred American food over her mother’s traditional Vietnamese cooking — yes, the cooking that made Tung an acclaimed chef. But, as Lyn realizes in retrospect, sometimes children don’t always appreciate what’s in front of them until it’s no longer there.

Anyway, Tung tried to bring some Vietnamese flavors to a very traditional American dish, primarily by adding fish sauce and Accent flavoring. I didn’t end up including Accent flavoring because my local supermarket didn’t have any and I didn’t have time to run to the Asian market, so that may have affected my experience with the recipe.

It was really easy to make: start by boiling macaroni. Meanwhile, in a skillet, melt some butter, brown onions and garlic and add ground beef, cooking until browned. To that, add fish sauce and salt (and Accent flavoring).

Once the macaroni is finished, drain and rinse in cold water. Add the ground beef mixture and stir to mix. Pour it into a 9x13 pan — I found deep dish was best — and sprinkle with shredded cheese. Cover in foil and bake until the cheese is melted.

I really loved the idea of this macaroni more than the finished product. I didn’t think the fish sauce was enough to bring out that flavor. I also didn’t like how the cheese was just melted on the top and not incorporated throughout. (I prefer a creamy macaroni and cheese myself.) To me, the dish honestly tasted like ground beef with noodles and some cheese.

That said, I’m sure the Accent flavoring would’ve made a huge difference! I may experiment again with more fish sauce and creating more of a cheese sauce than just sprinkling it on top before baking.

I sort of wish I had chosen one of the many many more traditional Vietnamese recipes Tung serves at the restaurant, but honestly, a lot of them had ingredients that are hard to find here. They all sounded absolutely mouth-watering though!

Vietnamese macaroni and cheese inspired by Mango and Peppercorns

Print Recipe

Vietnamese Macaroni and Cheese

Prep Time5

Cook Time30

Total Time35

Course: Main Course

Ingredients

1 lb elbow macaroni or 3 cups
¼ cup unsalted butter
6 medium garlic cloves minced
½ medium sweet onion chopped
2 lbs ground beef
2 tsp fish sauce
½ tsp Accent Flavor Enhancer optional
¼ tsp kosher salt
4 cups shredded Colby-Jack cheese

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350-degrees F, with rack in the middle position.
Meanwhile, cook the macaroni according to the package directions. Rinse with cold water and set aside.
In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat, add the onions and garlic, stirring occasionally until lightly browned. Add the ground beef, breaking it up with a wooden spoon or spatula.
Lower the heat to low, stir in the fish sauce, Accent (if using), salt and cook for about 2 minutes. Raise the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally to incorporate the juices, until the beef is cooked through, about 5 minutes more.
Off the heat, stir in the reserved cooked macaroni, then transfer the mixture to a 9x13 pan. Scatter the cheese evenly across the top. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil, leaving some space between the top of the macaroni and the foil. Bake until the cheese is melted, 10-15 minutes.

Notes

From: Tung Nguyen in Mango and Peppercorns

If you had a deep 9x13 baking dish that would work best. When I used a regular one, it was too full to cover without the foil touching the cheese on top. The original recipe said to bake for 5-10 minutes but my cheese took closer to 15 minutes to melt, so I added additional time here.

Also, the original recipe called for 1¾ lbs of beef, but I used 2 lbs because that was what I had on-hand and didn’t want to save/waste ¼ lb of beef.

*I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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You Lucky Dog + Mac and Cheese Dog Treats

October 20, 2020 by Megan Leave a Comment

Sometimes you just need an easy read. My friends, 2020 is like all of those times combined. I recently read three rom com books in a row, and You Lucky Dog was the first. I chose it because it looked cute, and more importantly, it featured dogs, which meant I got to make some treats for my puppy again. (It’s been a while.) It was just what I needed.

Carly’s dog, Baxter, is the mopiest dog on the planet; Max’s Hazel is sociable and happy. It becomes almost immediately obvious to Carly, when she comes home, that the excitable basset hound laying on her couch isn’t hers. Cue the meet cute. Carly and Max meet when their dogs get mixed up through a mishap with their mutual dog walker.

I strongly related to Carly’s urge to go to NYC to get her career off the ground, no matter the consequences on her love life. (For those unaware, I did the same — after meeting my now-husband just a few months earlier… and ultimately moved back for him.) Outside of that, there are things to love about this novel — it’s an easy read; the dogs are cute; Max is a really loveable guy. There are also things I didn’t love so much, but none of that ruined it for me. I thought this was a charming book through and through. It whisked me off my feet just when I needed to be whisked.

And, as anticipated, it led me to dog treats. Mac and cheese dog treats, to be exact. Early on in the story, Baxter is eating macaroni and cheese when Carly finds him at Max’s house (a huge no-no!). Even beyond that, mac and cheese as a dog food is mentioned constantly. I knew it was the perfect pairing.

I found a recipe for cheesy dog treats and decided to do my best to make them into macaroni noodle shapes. As all dog treat recipes should, it contained few ingredients and was fairly easy to throw together. The hardest part was the cutting it into shapes, if I’m being honest. (A shape cut straight from a cookie cutter would certainly be easier.)

First, I whisked together eggs, olive oil and water until frothy. Then, added some shredded cheddar cheese. To that mixture, I added flour, about a half cup at a time to start.

When it got to stiff to stir, around the 1½ cup mark, I started adding just a tablespoon of flour at a time and used my hands to knead it in. (For reference, there are 8 tablespoons in a half cup of flour). After 2 cups of flour, my dough was ready and the cheese nicely incorporated from the heat of my hands.

I rolled my dough and then used two circular cookie cutters to cut thick O shapes. I used a 5-inch circle and a 2.5-inch circle.

Once I had the O shape, I cut that into about five pieces to make "noodles."

I laid them out on cookie sheets. You can get them quite close, as they don’t spread. (I probably had them too far apart here and had to use two cookie sheets.)

I baked them for about 15 minutes at 325 degrees, until the bottoms were lightly golden. The ultimate bake time will depend on how large your treats are; the original recipe called for 17-20 minutes.

Then, I turned off the oven and left them inside to cool overnight, which produces a crispier treat.

This recipe made about 7 dozen noodles, so I had a lot to go around! First, Beta sampled them.

And once she approved — as with most of my dog treats — I shared the love. I gave a bag to my neighbor, some to my coworkers and the rest to a couple of ladies in my book club with pups. They sent me pictures in as a thank you. Look how cute!

If you like curling up with your dog while enjoying a rom com now and then, I recommend giving this book a go. And, if you like spoiling your pup with homemade goodies, this recipe gets two paws up from Beta (and all the other dogs too)!

Print Recipe

Mac and Cheese Dog Treats

Prep Time15

Cook Time20

Total Time35

Servings: 7 dozen (approx)

Ingredients

2 large eggs
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons cold water
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar or other strongly flavored cheese
2 cups all-purpose flour

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, olive oil, and water until the mixture is thick and frothy (approx. 1 – 2 minutes). Fold in the cheese.
Add the flour, a half cup at a time, stirring to combine, until you reach 1 1/2 cups. When the dough becomes too stiff to stir, continue adding flour 1 tablespoon at a time, knead it in with your hands. As the warmth from your hands works the dough, the cheese will melt and smooth out the dough.
If the mixture remains slightly crumbly even after you have kneaded it for several minutes, rinse your hands with cold water, shake them off and work this small amount of water into the dough – that should be just enough to bring it together perfectly.
Using a rolling pin, roll out your dough to ¼” thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut the dough into shapes.
Place the dough on a cookie sheet; the dough will have very minimal spread, so the cookies do not need much extra spacing.
Bake your dog treats for 17 – 20 minutes until the bottoms are lightly golden.
Allow the dog treats to sit on the baking sheet for 2 minutes after you’ve taken them out of the oven, then move them to a wire rack to cool completely.
For a crisper, crunchier treat, turn off the oven and allow the treats to cool inside overnight.
Store in an airtight container for up to a week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

Slightly adapted from: Kol's Notes

To achieve a macaroni and cheese shape, use 5-inch and 2.5-inch circular cookie cutters to create an O. Once the O is formed, use a paring knife to cut it into 5 pieces and create "noodles." Begin checking after 13 minutes, pulling after the bottoms are slightly golden.

What She Ate #5: Barbara Pym + Baked Macaroni Cheese

May 7, 2019 by Megan Leave a Comment

For those of you who don’t know—and I didn’t—Barbara Pym was an English novelist, popular in the 1950s for her social comedies. She is the fifth woman Laura Shapiro discusses in What She Ate, and as such, this is the fifth post in my series about the nonfiction book about food.

Though her novels were not considered highbrow, they developed quite a following and have a beloved place in English culture. Pym wrote about relationships, about village life, and often about the church. She also included a lot of food in her writing, certainly mentioning the bad but more often celebrating the good of English cooking (when no one else was really talking about its positives).

[Read more...]

The One + Creamy Macaroni and Cheese

January 19, 2019 by Megan 7 Comments

I recently heard about John Marrs’ novel The One on the Currently Reading podcast, in an episode about “Books to Blow Your Socks Off.” (The episode was also amazing because it included an interview with Delia Owens, who wrote a wonderful recent favorite of mine, Where the Crawdads Sing.) The description was brief but intriguing, and I immediately rushed to get a copy from the library.

It takes place in a “near future,” one in which it has been discovered that people can be matched to their soulmates through their DNA. It’s 10 years after that discovery, and those who have been lucky enough to find “the one” are considered Matched and those who are still waiting are Unmatched. Because you can be matched to literally anyone, racism, homophobia, and religious and other prejudices no longer exist.

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Turtles All the Way Down + Spiral Mac 'n' Cheese

December 5, 2017 by Megan Leave a Comment

John Green has written many young adult novels, including one of my favorites, The Fault in Our Stars. He has a unique way of tackling both the everyday and the unexpected parts of the lives of teenagers. His latest novel, Turtles All the Way Down, is no exception. Like other teenagers, Aza tries her best in school, has an understanding best friend, and doesn’t know exactly what to do when she finds herself in a relationship. Aza also lives with obsessive-compulsive disorder and an often crippling level of anxiety, much of which was drawn from Green’s own experiences.

Because of that, Turtles tells an excellent, unique story. Admittedly, some of the scenes where Aza is having obsessive thoughts were hard to read. It almost felt like I was in her head, and in those moments, I read as if hiding behind split fingers - not wanting to go on but wanting to know what happened all the same. I admire Green’s willingness to not only discuss his own mental health issues but to write about them too, in a way that’s real.

Stories like these help to make mental health something that’s okay to talk about. The existence of a likeable character that readers can connect to and empathize with can help teenagers (and adults) realize that mental illness is not something to be embarrassed or ashamed of. In Green’s own words, “it’s important for people to hear from [those] who have good fulfilling lives and manage chronic mental illness as part of those good fulfilling lives.” And because of that, it is absolutely a book worth picking up - even if you aren’t familiar with John Green, even if you don’t usually read YA.

Honestly, the first thing I thought of when I looked at this book's cover was spiral macaroni and cheese. I think they eat it once over the course of the story, but in the end, I couldn’t get it out of my head and no other foods really stood out to me. So, no surprise, that’s what I decided to make. I found an easy recipe from Famished Fish and set to work for a quick, easy dinner one night.

To start, I brought my water to a boil and cooked my noodles according to the package instructions. The original recipe called for rotini, but I also think cavatappi would work great here.

While the noodles cooked, I made the sauce. I melted butter in a pan and then added flour to create a roux. To that, I added the dried mustard and paprika, slowly stirring in 1 cup of milk, so that it could fully incorporate with the roux and remain thick.

Then, I added in the remaining 2 cups of milk slowly, along with the salt and a dash of Worcestershire sauce. I continued cooking the sauce, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes more or so, until it thickened. I stirred in three-quarters of the cheese so it melted and became incorporated.

I drained the finished noodles and poured the cheese sauce on top, stirring until the noodles were fully covered. To serve, I spooned the mac 'n' cheese into bowls and topped each with a sprinkling of shredded cheese.

It was delicious! And so easy that I’ll definitely be adding it to my repertoire.

Creamy Spiral Mac 'n' Cheese

Servings: 4-6
Time: 15 minutes
Print

Ingredients

16 oz uncooked spiral noodles (rotini or cavatappi)
¼ cup butter
¼ cup flour
½ tsp mustard
½ tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
dash of Worcestershire sauce
3 cups milk, divided
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, divided

Directions

Add uncooked pasta to a large pot of boiling water. Cook 9-11 minutes, according to package directions.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan set over medium heat, melt the butter. When butter has melted, stir in flour to create a roux.
Slowly stir in 1 cup of milk along with the mustard and paprika. Stir and cook until the mixture thickens. Add the remaining 2 cups of milk and the salt and Worcestershire sauce. Cook and stir 5 minutes until has thickened.
Stir in 1½ cups of the sharp cheddar cheese. Stir the sauce until the cheese has melted.
Drain the pasta and return to large pot. Carefully pour the cheese sauce over the cooked pasta. Stir gently to combine the cheese sauce and pasta.
Ladle the macaroni and cheese spirals into a large serving bowl and sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of sharp cheddar cheese.
Serve immediately.

Adapted from: Famished Fish

This post contains affiliate links. Full disclosure here.

Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life + Mac and Cheese in a Jalapeno-Chipotle Cream Sauce

December 11, 2016 by Megan 4 Comments

I have been wanting to talk about Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life since I watched the long-awaited last four words two weeks ago. Even though I started it a little late because of my trip, I still finished it before most of my friends. [SPOILER ALERT: Scroll down to the recipe if you’d like to avoid potential spoilers for any/all of the four new episodes.]

rs_1024x694-161115115116-1024-gilmore-girls-key-art-ch-111516 — Photo Credit: E-Online

I have to admit, like many, I was a little disappointed in the Netflix revival. It was certainly enjoyable to see the familiar faces around Stars Hollow and revisit the beloved characters. There were peaks where they seemed to really have their rhythm back (gotta love those fast talkers) and poignant moments that captured the essence of the show, but for me, those were few and far between.

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