Mama's Macaroni and Cheese

There were certain dishes that my Mama made especially for her Daddy for Sunday Dinners. The most requested was her Chicken and Dumplin's, but the runner up was her wonderful Ole Fashioned Macaroni and Cheese! This one will be on my Thanksgiving table this year for sure!

1 cup Macaroni, uncooked
2 Eggs, beaten
2 cups, Milk
½ pound, Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Salt & Pepper
2 T Butter

Cook macaroni, drain. Combine eggs and milk in a large bowl. Stir in macaroni, cheese and seasonings. Spoon mixture into a 13x9 casserole dish that has been sprayed with oil. Dot with butter and bake at 325 degrees for 40 to 60 minutes or until set. You can try the knife method. Stick a knife in the center. It should come out clean. Mainly just check that it's not watery. (I use the giggle method. I shake the pan gently, and if it barely moves in the center, it's done... If it's set hard and doesn't move, it's over-done and hard. It takes a while to get this method down, but after you've made as many as I have, you can just look and tell!)

Note: Add a little extra cheese on top, if you like the ‘Crunchy Cheese Top’.

Seven Layer Pasta Salad

This salad has the taste of Mama's 7 Layer Salad topping... the part with the peas, bacon, mayo and Parmesan Cheese. It's very easy and tastes wonderful.

4 cups cooked elbow macaroni
1 can young sweet peas
1 small can yellow corn
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons bacon pieces
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Salt, pepper and basil (to taste)

Toss ingredients together until mixed well. Cover and refrigerate or serve immediately.

Cheeseburger Macaroni

This is a dish that I make for my Wednesday night crowd at PBC. The kids especially like the flavor of it. When I make it for 60 people, I use the big 6 pound cans of Cheese Sauce, but at home I use Velveeta cheese. You could also use a condensed Cheddar soup. It is super simple and yummy!

12oz elbow macaroni
2 lbs hamburger, browned and drained
16oz box Velveeta (Mexican flavor)*
1 cup milk
1/4 cup spaghetti sauce
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste

Cook and drain pasta. Place pasta and hamburger in a greased casserole dish. Heat cheese, milk, spaghetti sauce and seasonings in a sauce pan until warm and mixed well. Pour over pasta and meat. Stir until combined. Cover and cook for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

* Sub a homemade cheese sauce to save money. Recipe below.

Cheese Sauce

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp flour

1 cup whole milk

1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar, shredded

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp chili powder

Add the butter to a small sauce pot. Heat the butter until melted. Add flour and whisk. Cook until the mixture turns dark beige.

Whisk the milk into the flour and butter mixture. Turn the heat up slightly and allow the milk to come to a simmer while whisking. When it reaches a simmer, the mixture will thicken. Once it's thick enough to coat a spoon, turn off the heat.

Stir in the shredded cheddar, one handful at a time, until melted into the sauce. If needed, place the pot over a low flame to help the cheese melt.

Once all the cheese is melted into the sauce, stir in the salt and chili powder.

Mama's Macaroni and Cheese Casserole

Edmond Gray was, too say the least, an unusual man. Some thought that he was abrasive and cold. He was an old Navy man. For those who knew him, there was much more to him. Edmond was Mama’s favorite cousin. In November before Mama died, she wrote in her date book:

"Billy & I drove to the beach in the grey 220SEL. Edmond & Pat came down. We went to Shoneys for supper. Edmond and I stayed up until 2am!"
To me, this said a lot. If you knew Edmond, he didn’t spend that much time talking to anybody. One day, I got a splinter in my finger. I came to the table where they were drinking coffee and displayed my finger. Edmond looked at it, then me and said, “If you’re looking for sympathy, I can tell you where to find it. It’s in the dictionary between sh*t and syphilis!”

Edmond and his family came down one weekend for a visit. Mama, as always, had fixed a big meal. She went to the oven to get the casserole out, and it slipped or the dish broke. The casserole flipped onto Mama’s forearm. She screamed and Edmond came running. He was an EMT at one time. He smeared butter on her arm and wrapped it in an ace bandage. Mama called Dr. Perry and asked him about it. He told her to come in and see him on Monday morning, but to expect some scaring because that would be a 2nd to 3rd degree burn. A casserole with cheese at 375 degrees could do a lot of damage to the tender skin on the forearm. Mama went to see him on Monday and he asked about the bandage and Mama told him about Edmond. With eyebrows scrunched together, Dr. Perry unwrapped her arm carefully. He stood there staring and said “Judy, if you burnt this arm, I can’t tell it!” There was not a mark on her arm.
 
In memory of Edmond, I'm posting Mama's Mac-n-Cheese recipe.

1 cup Macaroni, uncooked
2 Eggs, beaten
2 cups, Milk
½ pound, Cheddar Cheese
Salt & Pepper
2 T Butter

Cook macaroni, drain. Combine eggs and milk in a large bowl. Stir in macaroni, cheese and seasonings. Spoon mixture into a casserole dish that has been sprayed with oil. Dot with butter and bake at 325 degrees for 40 to 60 minutes or until set. You can try the knife method. Stick a knife in the center. It should come out clean. Mainly just check that it's not watery.

This was the only picture I could get... It's like a feeding frenzy when you serve this mac-n-cheese!

Note: Add a little extra cheese on top, if you like the ‘Crunchy Cheese Top’.