What a great experience this was mixed with an opportunity to honor one of our most loved forum members! God bless Gary.
One thing I learned from this experience is that I better improve my plating and my photography skills if I want to compete with the big boys. I had a pretty disappointing showing in this throwdown.
I pulled out an old mac & cheese recipe that the wife and I found several years ago and played with it for a while. My son and I like to see how many different cheeses we can put together without overpowering the taste buds and still get the great mac&cheese flavor.
So here was my entry. I know...crappy photo and it really didn't accentuate the Mac & Cheese.
Even though it doesn't look that great believe me, the taste is amazing!
Here is the recipe and directions. Be warned, it's a little pricey because of all the cheese and if you are dieting, this will blow it!
Bill’s Amped up 10 cheese Smoked Mac & Cheese with Spiced Bacon Sprinkles
Ingredients:
· 1 pounds small shell type macaroni or elbows – your preference
· 6 eggs
· 1/2 cup or more cubed Velveeta cheese – cube it small and it melts better
· 1/4 pound (2 sticks) butter, melted
· 3 cups heavy cream, divided
· 2 cups grated extra sharp yellow Cheddar, divided
· 1 ½ cups double smoked cheddar
· 1 ½ cups smoked gouda cheese
· 1 ½ cups grated extra-sharp white Cheddar
· 3/4 cups grated mozzarella
· 1/2 cup grated Asiago
· 1/2cup grated Gruyere
· 1/2 cup grated Monterey Jack
· 1/2 cup grated Muenster
Assembly and Cooking Directions:
Preheat the smoker and/or oven to 325 degrees F.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook until slightly al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain and mix immediately with the Velveeta and keep warm.
Whisk the eggs in a large bowl until frothy. Add the melted butter a little at a time to avoid cooking the eggs (tempered). Add two cups of the heavy cream and stir. Stir in the macaroni and Velveeta a little at a time until it is well blended. Add remaining heavy cream, all of the shredded cheese (except one cup of extra sharp yellow cheddar) a little at a time stirring gently.
Pour the mixture into 9 by 13-inch casserole and cook for 30 minutes in the smoker. After 30 minutes, stir the mac & cheese to distribute the smoky flavor and be sure that all the cheese is well blended. Back in the smoker for 15 more minutes.
Remove from smoker and stir again. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of extra sharp yellow cheese, sprinkle the spiced bacon (recipe below) and bake until golden brown on top, about 30-45 minutes more. Allow to cool for several minutes before serving.
Spiced Bacon (rub mixture)
· 2 tbs brown sugar
· 1 tbs fine ground corn meal
· 1 tsp cinnamon
· 1 tsp nutmeg
· 1 tbs fresh ground black pepper
Start with 6 slices of thick sliced Hickory Smoked Bacon. Preheat oven to 425*. Place bacon on a wire rack on a bar pan. Apply a good layer of rub to the bacon (should be able to see the texture of the bacon through the rub). Bake in the 425* oven for about 30-45 minutes or until the bacon is crispy. If using for the mac & cheese, dice or crumble the bacon.
If there are any leftovers, use them to make fried mac-n-cheese. Dip in a simple egg wash and roll in unseasoned breadcrumbs then deep fry until golden brown.
Hope you enjoy.
Bill
One thing I learned from this experience is that I better improve my plating and my photography skills if I want to compete with the big boys. I had a pretty disappointing showing in this throwdown.
I pulled out an old mac & cheese recipe that the wife and I found several years ago and played with it for a while. My son and I like to see how many different cheeses we can put together without overpowering the taste buds and still get the great mac&cheese flavor.
So here was my entry. I know...crappy photo and it really didn't accentuate the Mac & Cheese.
Even though it doesn't look that great believe me, the taste is amazing!
Here is the recipe and directions. Be warned, it's a little pricey because of all the cheese and if you are dieting, this will blow it!
Bill’s Amped up 10 cheese Smoked Mac & Cheese with Spiced Bacon Sprinkles
Ingredients:
· 1 pounds small shell type macaroni or elbows – your preference
· 6 eggs
· 1/2 cup or more cubed Velveeta cheese – cube it small and it melts better
· 1/4 pound (2 sticks) butter, melted
· 3 cups heavy cream, divided
· 2 cups grated extra sharp yellow Cheddar, divided
· 1 ½ cups double smoked cheddar
· 1 ½ cups smoked gouda cheese
· 1 ½ cups grated extra-sharp white Cheddar
· 3/4 cups grated mozzarella
· 1/2 cup grated Asiago
· 1/2cup grated Gruyere
· 1/2 cup grated Monterey Jack
· 1/2 cup grated Muenster
Assembly and Cooking Directions:
Preheat the smoker and/or oven to 325 degrees F.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook until slightly al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain and mix immediately with the Velveeta and keep warm.
Whisk the eggs in a large bowl until frothy. Add the melted butter a little at a time to avoid cooking the eggs (tempered). Add two cups of the heavy cream and stir. Stir in the macaroni and Velveeta a little at a time until it is well blended. Add remaining heavy cream, all of the shredded cheese (except one cup of extra sharp yellow cheddar) a little at a time stirring gently.
Pour the mixture into 9 by 13-inch casserole and cook for 30 minutes in the smoker. After 30 minutes, stir the mac & cheese to distribute the smoky flavor and be sure that all the cheese is well blended. Back in the smoker for 15 more minutes.
Remove from smoker and stir again. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of extra sharp yellow cheese, sprinkle the spiced bacon (recipe below) and bake until golden brown on top, about 30-45 minutes more. Allow to cool for several minutes before serving.
Spiced Bacon (rub mixture)
· 2 tbs brown sugar
· 1 tbs fine ground corn meal
· 1 tsp cinnamon
· 1 tsp nutmeg
· 1 tbs fresh ground black pepper
Start with 6 slices of thick sliced Hickory Smoked Bacon. Preheat oven to 425*. Place bacon on a wire rack on a bar pan. Apply a good layer of rub to the bacon (should be able to see the texture of the bacon through the rub). Bake in the 425* oven for about 30-45 minutes or until the bacon is crispy. If using for the mac & cheese, dice or crumble the bacon.
If there are any leftovers, use them to make fried mac-n-cheese. Dip in a simple egg wash and roll in unseasoned breadcrumbs then deep fry until golden brown.
Hope you enjoy.
Bill
