Hey there Honey's and New-Bees!

Every time Romeo and I go to Costco, we can’t help making a pit stop at the cheese fridge to pick up a few blocks of cheese. That being said, we have always have a lot of cheese in our fridge lol. As much as I’d like to convince myself that you can never have too much cheese, there is a limit and in order to avoid having a drawer filled with mouldy cheese I make a point to whip up my Cheesy Stovetop Pasta at least once a month; which is basically Mac & Cheese, but I use penne instead of macaroni, or whatever other pasta I have on hand, so I can’t really call it “Mac & Cheese”.

Cheddar is the most common cheese used in traditional Mac & Cheese, which is what I’m using for this recipe, but if you don’t have enough on hand (or any) feel free to substitute with whatever cheese you do have. I once used smoked cheddar which was GLORIOUS and gave the dish a nice bacon-y taste, I’ve tried a combination of Emmental and Gruyere, which was awesome but most of the time I just combine whatever I have on hand. Getting creative and using what I have on hand is what makes cooking fun and interesting for me, and once you have the basics down pat the more comfortable you’ll be in the kitchen and have more fun getting creative.

Hope you enjoy this recipe, and please let me know in the comments how it turned out for you, and what cheese combination you tried out!

Coat the bottom of your dutch oven with 1 tbsp of butter. Allow the butter to warm then add your onions and coat them with the butter. 

Let the onions cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add a little salt and continue to cook for about 20 minutes, stirring often. Depending on your stove you may need to adjust the temperature; my stove runs hot so about half way through the cook time I lower my heat so I don’t burn my onions.  Once your onions are a dark golden brown, continue to the next step.

Add the remaining butter into the dutch oven, then gradually whisk in flour, making sure the onions gets evenly coated with the flour, then continuously for about 3-5 minutes. It’s really important that you don’t rush this step, I’ve made that mistake more than a few times and ended up with a raw flour taste in my sauce (not the most appetizing taste). It’s also just as important that you stir the butter and flour mixture continuously before adding the milk to avoid scorching the flour which has a really unpleasant burned flavor.

You’ll know it’s time to add the cream when the flour starts to give off a toasted flavor (kind of like popcorn) but if you don’t smell the toasted scent after 5 minutes don’t worry you’re pretty safe to add the cream once the flour’s been cooking for 5 minutes. Gradually whisk in the cream making sure to whisk continuously until the sauce thickens (it happens pretty fast), then start adding the cheddar.

Add cheddar one handful at a time, making sure the first handful has completely melted before adding the next. If you add all the cheese at once, you run the risk of it all clumping together and turning unto a big goopy mess. So remember, take your time and allow the cheese to melt into your sauce, that little bit of extra time really goes a long way. Continue adding cheese until all the cheddar has been used up, lower the heat and let sauce cook on low until pasta is ready, making sure to stir occasionally so that cheese sauce does not burn.

Cook pasta as per package directions, drain and mix into cheese sauce with the friulano cheese one handful at a time and serve!

Personally, I like my cheesy pasta on the gooey, creamier side, however, I know there are a lot of people who prefer it on the drier side. If you fall into the later category and want your pasta a little drier all you need to do is cover your dutch oven and bake in the oven at 350ºF for 30 minutes!

If you’re not sure which way you prefer try both out and be your own judge and decide from there!

Happy cooking and enjoy!