Ingredients
Mac and Cheese
- ¼ c butter
- 1 garlic clove, chopped
- 5 tbsp. flour
- 3 c milk
- 1 c grated parmesan
- 1 c shredded mozzarella
- 1 c ricotta
- 1 ½ tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. ground pepper
- ½ tsp. chili flakes, crushed
- ½ tsp. fennel seeds, crushed
- juice of half a lemon
- 1 lb elbow macaroni pasta
Bread crumb topping
- 2 tbsp. butter, melted
- zest of half a lemon
- ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1 c panko bread crumbs
Directions
Mac and cheese
- Preheat an oven to 375F.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, in the meantime make the cheese sauce.
- In a saucepan melt the butter, add the chopped garlic and then the flour, whisk everything together. Cook for a few minutes until the flour starts to change color become a pale golden brown.
- Add the milk slowly whisking constantly, cook the milk mixture until it thickens and is streaming, stir occasionally to prevent the bottom from scorching.
- Add in the cheese, seasoning, spices, everything except the pasta.
- Cook the pasta until it is al dente, you want there to be enough of a bite that the pasta won’t turn to mush after you’ve baked the casserole. Drain the pasta and run cold water over it to stop the cooking process.
- Mix the pasta and the cheese sauce together, taste and adjust the seasoning. It may look like a lot of sauce, but the pasta will absorb some of the liquid as it bakes.
- Pour the pasta and cheese mixture into a 9x13” baking dish.
Bread crumb topping
- Combine all of the ingredients for the topping and sprinkle evenly over the top of the pasta, make sure to spread it out to the edges of the pan.
- Bake at 375F for 30-45 minutes until the bread crumbs are golden brown and there is bubbling around the edges.
