Extreme Comfort Food, From Scratch

Hello everyone!  I am happy to say Ryan and I fit in a from scratch meal this week before I headed home to the States.  Yes, that's right, I am in the US right now.  But before I could go, we had to make a delicious meal from scratch because the previous weekend was just too hectic, and I am out of town for 2 weeks, so we just had to squeeze this one in.

Comfort food can be many things to different people, but for me, my ultimate comfort food, well other than chocolate, is macaroni and cheese.  I could eat this every day, all day, and still want more.  Since I love this dish and it is such a classic, we decided to do this from scratch. 

Here are the recipes:
We started with the egg pasta dough so we could make the macaroni noodles.
Ryan did the pasta extruding, but after a few he realized that there might be a better way than the directions, which stated to let a 6-8 inch strand extrude and then use a knife to cut them.  Well, there may have been a reason for this direction, but we did it our own way instead.  After about every inch, Ryan would chop it as it was coming out and the noodles just piled up.  The machine did over heat, so we may have been asking too much, or it could be because our house is original wired for 220 and it is converted to 110 for us Americans to use!
Look how cute they are
You can't have mac and cheese without the cheese, and lots of it.  Since we had a lot of pasta, we wound up doubling the cheese sauce recipe.
The Betty Crocker recipe, which I used in my undergrad cooking class, and I think I got an A on this assignment, calls for the usual and the unusual, like worchestershire sauce and ground mustard.
In goes the flour to thicken it up.
Then the milk and cheese.  Well, some of he milk.  I made a slight oopsie and only did the amount called for in the recipe because I forgot we planned to double it, so I went back after the fact and added in some more milk.  Not the end of the world.
Oh so cheesey!
Look at my dog in the back, staring and hoping she will get some.  These noodles came out perfectly.
Boilin' time!
Could we have cut it any closer?  I thought this was going to make the biggest mess, but I managed to keep it all in there.
The next step was to get this in the oven for about 20 minutes of baking.
Since just mac and cheese may have been too rich and lacking in some nutrients, we steamed up some broccoli for the side.
Oh wow, look at that...

This wine is supposed to be award winning.  It turns out it is a sparkling wine.  It was actually very good and went well with the mac and cheese.
Dinner is served!
Seriously, it doesn't get much better than this.
This may have been the best mac and cheese I have ever had.
I am glad there was a lot leftover because I was able to leave Ryan with some dinners for the week while I am gone.  Actually I put a few containers of it in the freezer, so I hope to have some more when I get back to the island.

I am so exhausted from the flight home and then I went out to see my stepsister before she heads back to school in the morning, followed by dinner with some friends and my sister...I am just ready for bed now, so goodnight everyone.

QUESTION:  What is your comfort food?

9 comments:

Shannon said...

You completely outdid yourself with this one! That looks like the richest, creamiest mac and cheese I have ever seen! The definition of comfort food!

Beth said...

What a great homemade dish! We'll be having Noel's family's mac and cheese this weekend for easter! They do it with sharp white cheddar and bread crumbs on top. Sooo good.

Melissa said...

Glad you made it home safely. Enjoy your time in the US with family and friends!

FoodFitnessFreshair said...

I love mac & cheese, and homemade is always the best...although I can't say I've ever had it entirely homemade with the noodles and everything..this is great! Have fun back home!

Houston Divorce Attorney said...

Looks like great homemade mac and cheese. Thanks for the tips.

Mari said...

That looks delish! I love when you two do f"rom scratch meals" =)

Have fun while you are back in the states!

Anonymous said...

You had me at CHEESE! Looks wonderful - great way to end the weekend and glad you got home safe and you are able to get some rest today!

Anonymous said...

Oh my gosh, this looks amazing! I love mac and cheese. I would have to say that it is up on my list of comfort foods! Anything with cheese...haha.

Gina; The Candid RD said...

So Ryan isn't with you?? I'm sure he loves that you left him such amazing food! Well I'm glad you are in the states and have a chance to stop at Trader Joe's and stock up!! :)

The mac and cheese looks awesome. I love that you make your own noddles. Lately my parents and some family friends of ours have been discussing a possible catering company to open and I wanted to make my own pasta!! I need your help if this does happen, I will have to look over all of your previous posts.
Favorite comfort food? PIZZA!

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