Macaroni with Cheese

Hello again. The Beta Taster and I are still working away on our Coffee Sponge, so no dessert post this time. I came across this Mac and Cheese recipe in my 1905 edition of Fannie Farmer's What to Have for Dinner. I've settled on trying this one because I wanted to compare a 110 year old recipe to how it's contemporarily made.

Two very full ramekins. Perhaps I need a larger baking dish.

Growing up, my brother and I had mac and cheese fairly frequently. It's one of the first things I remember our mom letting us cook for ourselves. Our version was the one pot version made from Velveeta and cooked on the stove. It was simple thing. Cook elbow macaroni. While pasta was draining/cooling, add Velveeta and a little milk to the pan, stir over medium heat until melted. Add pasta back in, stir to coat, and eat.

Mac and cheese: 1/2 inch thick. Perhaps I need a smaller baking dish. 

My world view was rocked when I discovered my best friend's version was the boxed version, you know the sort, with a cheese flavor packet which may or may not contain any dairy. I hadn't known there were other mac and cheeses until then. I also promptly decided that was my favorite way to make mac and cheese, mainly because it was novel.

Cooked shells.

Later on, I discovered the complicated way of making mac and cheese. The sort where you make a white sauce, melt your cheese into it, add your cooked pasta, and bake in the oven. Perhaps you top with breadcrumbs or not, as the mood, panty, and/or recipe dictate. I found this last way made the most dishes and took the longest. Perhaps that's why it was the tastiest version I've found too.

Making the white sauce.

Baked Macaroni with Cheese:
(adapted from Fannie Farmer's What to Have for Dinner, 1905 edition)

1/2 cup uncooked pasta (I used small shells)
1 T butter
1 T flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
a dash or two of ground black pepper
1 cup scalded milk
1/4 cup grated cheese, plus more for sprinkling (I used about1/2 cup total of medium cheddar.)
breadcrumbs for sprinkling

1. Cook pasta, drain, then rinse with hot water. Put in greased baking dish. A few minutes before pasta is done, begin scalding milk.
2. Melt butter in sauce pan.
3. Add flour and seasonings, stir until blended.
4. Gradually stir in milk, then stir until smooth(er) and sauce thickens. (Neither try managed to get the sauce completely smooth, but I didn't find a problem in the finished texture.)
5. Add cheese, stir until incorporated, and pour over macaroni
6. Sprinkle with more grated cheese and bread crumbs.
7. Bake at 350 F for 35 to 45 minutes or until brown or until patience runs out.

In the oven.

Results: I like this one a lot and it is undoubtedly macaroni and cheese. Perhaps a little on the salty side but I'm one of those people that almost never adds salt to their food. Also there isn't an overwhelming cheese flavor which I find kind of pleasant. Some mac and cheeses compete to see which can pack the most cheese per serving or be the richest. What's surprised me the most is that the recipe hasn't changed much in the century and a bit it's been around. The only that that really struck me was the scalding of the milk before adding it to the roux. I think I normally add cold milk and just give it a little longer to cook up.