Smoky, earthy homemade baked mac 'n' cheese goodness, with mushrooms and bacon, and a nice selection of 5 artisan cheeses for a creamy, gooey to-die-for sauce.

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INGREDIENTS

150 grams cheddar cheese, extra old white or Dubliner ; grated
50 grams Gruyere cheese ; grated
50 grams Oka artisan cheese ; grated
50 grams cheddar cheese, medium ; grated
50 grams gouda cheese, (optionally smoked) ; grated
50 grams Parmesan or Parmano cheese ; grated, but do not mix with other cheeses, this is for the topping
125 grams smoked slab bacon ; diced to 1/4" pieces
50 grams dried mixed wild field mushrooms ; see instructions
2 each Shallots ; diced finely
2 tablespoons Butter
2 tablespoons All purpose flour
1 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg (powdered)
1 pinch Ginger (powdered)
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt, more for cooking pasta
1/2 cup Chicken broth
2/3 cup Dry white wine
2/3 cup Half-and-half cream ; or table cream
350 grams Tortiglioni pasta ; cooked el dente per directions

Servings

INSTRUCTIONS

About a half hour before you want to start, boil a cup of water and add your dried mushrooms to it, cover, remove from heat and let them sit for the 30 minutes to reconstitute. Then chop finely.

Bring 2 liters of sea-salted water on the boil for the pasta. It doesn’t need to be timed to be ready when everything else is, just drain it and let it sit in the colander to stay warm, don’t rinse it off.

Preheat oven to 400F.

You’ll need a 2 qt baking dish. I use Pyrex or glass baking dishes because they heat and cook more evenly.

Heat a skillet over medium heat and add the bacon, fry until it starts to release it’s fat and crisp up a bit. Add the diced shallots and butter and fry for about 2 more minutes until the shallots soften. Add mushrooms now and fry for 2 more minutes. Sprinkle the flour over it while stirring, and continue to stir constantly for about 1 minute. Now add the wine and chicken broth. As you keep stirring you should see it start to thicken. Now add the cream and stir. Continue to stir and add the mustard, salt, nutmeg and ginger. Now start adding the grated cheese a big handful at a time, stirring constantly, and let each handful melt before adding the next. Continue until all cheese is added and fully melted.

Add tortiglioni or whatever macaroni you plan on using and stir to coat evenly with the cheese sauce. Pour into 2qt oven-proof baking dish. Shake the parmesan over the dish. Bake at 400F for 20 – 25 minutes, until it begins to brown and gets all bubbly on top. Remove from oven and let sit for 15 minutes.

Optionally, pulse 2 cups of stale bread torn into pieces with 2 tablespoons of butter into coarse crumbs and layer over the dish after the parmesan for a crunchy topping if you wish. I prefer it without.

NOTES

It's really important to use the smoked slab bacon, field mushrooms and artisan cheeses. It makes for a real earthy, smokey comfort dish that's just sooooo good.

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5 Star Mac 'N' Cheese

150 grams cheddar cheese, extra old white or Dubliner grated
50 grams Gruyere cheese grated
50 grams Oka artisan cheese grated
50 grams cheddar cheese, medium grated
50 grams gouda cheese, (optionally smoked) grated
50 grams Parmesan or Parmano cheese grated, but do not mix with other cheeses, this is for the topping
125 grams smoked slab bacon diced to 1/4" pieces
50 grams dried mixed wild field mushrooms see instructions
2 each Shallots diced finely
2 tablespoons Butter 
2 tablespoons All purpose flour 
1 tablespoons Dijon mustard 
1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg (powdered) 
1 pinch  Ginger (powdered) 
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt, more for cooking pasta 
1/2 cup Chicken broth 
2/3 cup Dry white wine 
2/3 cup Half-and-half cream or table cream
350 grams Tortiglioni pasta cooked el dente per directions

About a half hour before you want to start, boil a cup of water and add your dried mushrooms to it, cover, remove from heat and let them sit for the 30 minutes to reconstitute. Then chop finely.

Preheat oven to 400F.

You’ll need a 2 qt baking dish. I use Pyrex or glass baking dishes because they heat and cook more evenly.

Add Photo See 2 more photos

Frying the diced slab bacon, ready to dice shallots
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Bacon, shallots and mushrooms all fried up
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Grated cheeses
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Ready to go into the oven
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Done
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Done
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Nutrition

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Serving Size: 1 Serving (225g)
Recipe Makes: 4 Servings

Calories: 169
Calories from Fat: 72 (43%)

Amt Per Serving		% DV

	Total Fat 8g	11 %
	Saturated Fat 4.1g	21 %
	Monounsaturated Fat 2.4g
	Polyunsanturated Fat 0.6g
Cholesterol 19.9mg		6 %
Sodium 336.6mg		12 %
Potassium 198.9mg		5 %
Total Carbohydrate 14g		4 %
	Dietary Fiber 0.1g	0 %
	Sugars, other 13.9g
Protein 5.9g		8 %
Powered by: USDA Nutrition Database Disclaimer: Nutrition facts are derived from linked ingredients (shown at left in colored bullets) and may or may not be complete. Always consult a licensed nutritionist or doctor if you have a nutrition-related medical condition.

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Calories per serving: 169

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