Tales from Chez Zeo - Jonny's Wintery Mac 'n Cheese

Last week I made plans for some friends to come over for dinner on Sunday.  I was presented with a list of various dietary limitations, which included onions, tomatoes, garlic, any citrus, basically anything acidic.  Egads!  What is one to do??

I talked to my friend Jon who is as experimental in the kitchen as I am, if not moreso (he makes chocolates!), when it comes to cooking.  He talked about a pasta dish he had been thinking about with butternut squash and braised kale and cheeses.  It sounded potentially delicious, so I figured I'd take a stab at it.

Now, I love Mac 'n Cheese.  I have about 8 receipes I've either clipped from magazines or read in some of my cookbooks.  Over the past few years I have tried various combinations to achieve maximum mac 'n cheese nirvana.  All attempts have been delicious, but the gods must have been smiling upon me this weekend.

The best part about mac 'n cheese is the ability to consistently improvise.  Throw some things together with pasta and bake it with cheese...how can that not be good?  (Although I will say I did make one really tasteless version once.  Always remember the salt.)  You can always change the pasta, the vegetables, and the cheeses, it's just a matter of finding a combination that really melds well together.

There are a few reasons I believe this dish was particularly delectable:

1) The Pasta - My hand was on a bag of whole wheat pasta at Trader Joe's (if you're going to have mac 'n cheese, might as well try to make it somewhat healthy!) when I saw Organic Brown Rice Pasta right next to it.  I chose adventure and grabbed that bag instead, as I thought it might be lighter.  Whole wheat pasta tends to be be heavy and can make you feel like you've eaten a rock.

2) The Cheeses - To go with with the wintery and savory theme I was aiming for, and to provide a nice contrast to the sweet and sultry butternut squash, I used a mix of mozzarella, smoked gouda, and nutty manchego.

3) The Bechemel Sauce - I admit I'm not a pro at making bechemel, I mostly wing it and always end up putting just a touch too much flour, but I don't feel it's an exact science (apologies if that is sacrilegious to anyone).  Though all the recipes I usually use call for whole milk, I'm a rebel and use 1% milk.  It doesn't make the dish feel heavy.

The combination of this trio of choices resulted in the most delicious and savory mac 'n cheese I've ever made.  It was light and fluffy, and you didn't feel greasy and bloated like you just ate a huge brick of cheese.  Plus it had a good dose of fiber, and let's be honest, who doesn't love fiber?

So in honor of my friend for his inspiration, I've dubbed this Jonny's Wintery Mac 'n Cheese.   Try it, improvise on it, and let me know how it is.  Remember, it's not an exact science, so if your proportions aren't totally perfect, don't stress about it.  It'll still be delicious...hopefully.

JONNY'S WINTERY MAC 'N CHEESE

INGREDIENTS

1 lb Organic Brown Rice Pasta (available at Trader Joe's)
2 bunches kale
1 lb butternut squash (cut into 1 inch cubes) - (if you want to cheat, get two packages of pre-cut butternut squash in the vegetable aisle)
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth

3 cups 1% low fat milk
3 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded smoked gouda cheese
1 cup shredded Manchego cheese

2 slices whole wheat bread
Olive oil
Parmesan cheese

Salt
Pepper


First things first: Prep all the fixin's.

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. In a roasting pan, lay out the butternut squash.  Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt & pepper, get down and dirty and toss it all together with your hands.  Roast the butternut squash 30 minutes or so, until soft and slightly caramelized.  Be sure to toss the squash once during roasting.

3.  Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions (be sure to salt the water!).  Drain and set to the side.

4.  While the pasta and squash are cooking, wash the kale, remove the tough stems and slice into 1/2 to 1 inch strips.

5. In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, add the kale and chicken broth.  Season with salt, and toss lightly.  Cover and braise the kale until it has wilted down significantly, about 10-15 minutes (it will still be a bit crunchy even after all that braising).  Drain when finished.

6.  Remove the crusts from the slices of bread and pulse in a food processor until you have fine bread crumbs.  Place in a bowl, toss with a little olive oil and set aside.

Now that you have all the ingredients ready to go, time to make the sauce!

7.  In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat.  Sprinkle in the flour and stir with whisk until well incorporated.  Keep stirring until mixture thicken, about 2-3 minutes.

8.  Add the milk.  Whisk slowly, but continuously.  As the milk warms, the sauce will get thicker.  When it coats the back of a spoon, it's ready.

9.  Add the mozzarella, gouda, and manchego cheeses.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Now put it all together!

10.  Fold in the roasted squash, the braised kale, and the cooked pasta, and toss all together until everything is deliciously covered in the gooey white sauce.  Make sure to sample it...you know, to make sure it tastes right.

11.  Pour mixture into a baking dish large enough to handle all the goodness, and sprinkle the bread crumbs on top.  Sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top of that.

12.  Place in oven (still at 400 degrees) for another 20-30 minutes, until crust is brown and crispy and the whole dish is bubbly.

13.  Remove from oven and serve.

14.  Call your friends and tell them they should come over because it's so amazing.  Just make sure you don't eat it all before they arrive.  Oh and tell them to bring wine.  It's only polite.