Thinking outside the box.

(One of the meals I made from my farm box, using Grass Valley Dairy raw milk cheddar. The cheddar was buttery, sharp, and tangy, giving the sauce an extra richness and flavor kick.)

One of the first things I learned how to cook was macaroni and cheese. Not the usual way out of the blue Kraft box -- my mom's mac and cheese is made with a real Béchamel base, and it is amazing. As a matter of fact, I didn't taste the boxed kind until going to a friend's house when I was ten years old (and I loved it immediately). Kraft mac and cheese later played a prominent role in my first time living alone the summer after freshman year of college -- my roommates and I hid from the blistering Boston summer, eating The Cheesiest and watching CSI, Grey's Anatomy, and The O.C.

Perhaps my taste in TV hasn't much improved, but I've returned to appreciate my mom's original recipe for its deliciousness and -- whenever making Mom's recipes -- its inevitable sidekick, nostalgia. I've tried a few different variations over the last year: baking the final product in a glass dish (extra cheese on top melts into a bubbling, brown crust), adding white truffle oil (for a touch of sophistication -- even better with white truffle butter as the roux base), adding creamy goat cheese or blends of fancy cheeses, topping with sautéed wild mushrooms and/or crisped bacon or pancetta. As much as I enjoy playing dress-up when I want to act grown-up, the original is really the best (though, admittedly, less orange).

~

Macaroni and Cheese

1 c dry elbow macaroni (serves 2)

1 T butter

1 T flour

1 c milk, barely scalded*

3 oz sharp cheddar cheese, grated

* This recipe can be made with skim milk, but you have to be very careful when whisking together the sauce ingredients, and it's more likely to create lumps -- I recommend using 2% milk, or 1% once you've gotten comfortable with the Béchamel. Half and half is actually a bit heavy, and using cream results in more of a pudding than a sauce.

Cook macaroni in boiling, salted water. Meanwhile, melt butter in a small saucepan, and heat milk (either on the stovetop or in the microwave). Add flour to butter and whisk together for a minute over medium heat, stirring constantly to prevent burning (though if carefully done, brown butter can lend a fabulous nutty flavor). Add hot milk to the roux, gradually at first, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Allow the mixture to thicken. When the mixture coats the back of a spoon, add the cheese and stir until perfect and cheesy. Toss with pasta and serve.