When life gets tough and leaves me longing for a sense of security and contentment, I escape to my kitchen and cook my favorite comfort food: a bowl of macaroni and cheese.
Long considered a Depression-era food, macaroni and cheese actually dates back to the late 18th century. Our third president, Thomas Jefferson, is credited with introducing the dish to America. The story goes that Jefferson returned from a trip to Italy with a pasta maker and a recipe for macaroni coated with cheese. Originally made with equal amounts of grated Parmesan and butter, it would later feature the standard cheddar and bechamel sauce.
Reputedly Jefferson’s favorite meal, this casserole was served at Monticello, his Virginia home, and also at parties in Washington.
Although considered a luxury item reserved for the rich, macaroni and cheese did appear in Mary Randolph’s “The Virginia Housewife Or, Methodical Cook” in 1824. Her housekeeping and cookery book instructed readers to “boil the macaroni with milk and water.” After cooking and draining the macaroni, they should then place it in a bowl and cover the top with cheese and butter.
By 1851, the recipe had evolved into a richer, cheesier dish featuring alternating layers of Parmesan, butter and macaroni. According to Jean Anderson in “The American Century Cookbook” (Clarkson), the first saucy macaroni and cheese appeared in 1915 in the “Larkin Housewives’ Cook Book: Good Things to Eat and How to Prepare Them.” Many cookbooks, though, continued with the drier, layered dish through the 1950s.
Despite its long history on these shores, macaroni and cheese didn’t become a nationwide sensation until the Depression. By that time, pasta was being manufactured on a large scale, making macaroni cheap and widely available. Adding a little cheese, butter and bread crumbs to a pot of elbow macaroni provided unemployed, cash-strapped families with a simple, inexpensive and filling dinner.
These bargain entrees sustained not only Depression-era families but also every person I knew in college in the late 20th century. Whipped up in our dorm rooms, our mac and cheese came in a blue box courtesy of Kraft Foods.
Kraft introduced its iconic macaroni-and-cheese dinner in 1937. The timing couldn’t have been better. World War II brought about rationing and meatless Tuesdays, which, in turn, made Kraft’s fast, economical offering the meal of choice in most households.
Today the company sells more than 1 million boxes of macaroni and cheese every day.
Making it from scratch couldn’t be easier. While the elbows (or other short, tubular pasta) cook, I stir together equal parts flour and butter in a medium-sized pan over medium-low heat. In other words, I make a roux. To this I slowly add milk, which transforms my roux into a bechamel sauce.
While the sauce simmers, I sprinkle in my grated cheese of choice and a dash of ground white pepper and allow the ingredients to bubble away for a minute. By this point, my macaroni should have reached al dente, a firm but not hard consistency and the ideal level of doneness for this dish.
After draining the pasta, I tumble it into the sauce and stir the two together. At this stage, I could cook the macaroni and cheese for another minute and then serve it. I also could spoon it into a buttered baking pan, dot the top with bread crumbs, and bake for 30 minutes. Cook on the stove or bake in the oven? The decision is a matter of time and taste.
Often I choose a high-quality aged, sharp cheddar and mix it with a little Parmesan. For more intense flavor, I select a mixture of cheddar and Gruyere.
At the macaroni-and-cheese-only restaurant S’Mac in New York’s East Village, Sarita Ekya opts for such cheeses as cheddar, Muenster, provolone, American and pepper Monterey Jack. All these cheeses melt well, she says.
On days when I need a little cheer with my evening meal, I pull out my saucepans, a box of macaroni and a block of cheddar cheese and indulge in a little comfort cooking. Macaroni and cheese is the food of contentment for me.
Macaroni, tomato, basil and goat cheese
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
2 cups elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups skim milk
6 ounces goat cheese, broken into small pieces
3/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 1/2 cup tomatoes (about 2 medium-sized tomatoes), seeded and diced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped
1/3 cup bread crumbs
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Following the directions on the package, cook the macaroni until al dente.
Meanwhile, in a medium-sized saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter then add the flour, whisking until well combined. Cook the roux for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Over medium heat, slowly add the milk to the roux, stirring to incorporate. Cook together until slightly thickened.
Add the cheeses and ground pepper to the liquid. Stir periodically until well combined then remove from the heat.
Drain the macaroni. Tumble it into the pan with the cheese sauce and mix them together. Add the tomatoes and minced basil and stir to distribute macaroni, cheese, tomatoes and basil evenly.
Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter and pour it over the bread crumbs. Mix together until the crumbs are coated with butter and then sprinkle over the top of the macaroni and cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, at which time the bread crumbs should be golden and the macaroni and cheese ready to eat.
Stovetop macaroni and a cheese quartet
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
2 cups elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 cup Romano cheese, grated
Dash of ground white pepper
Curry powder, optional garnish
Hot paprika, optional garnish
Following the directions on the package, cook the macaroni until al dente.
Meanwhile, in a medium-sized saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter then add the flour, whisking until well combined. Cook the roux for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Over medium heat, slowly add the milk to the roux, stirring to incorporate. Cook together until slightly thickened.
Add the cheeses and pepper to the liquid. Stir periodically until well combined and then remove from the heat.
Drain the macaroni. Tumble it into the pan with the cheese sauce, stir them together and allow the mixture to cook for 1 minute over medium heat, until the sauce has thickened.
Spoon into bowls and serve immediately with an optional sprinkling of curry powder or hot paprika on top.
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