KerriansKitchen

KNR, p. 202 “The Kerrians’ Famous Mac & Cheese”

 

The temperatures are cooling off and comfort food takes center stage at our house. We fend off the chill with body warming soup and hearty sandwiches, but every once in a while, we like mac & cheese for lunch or dinner.

I like to taste test the new versions with different goodies added to the mix, but there is a basic recipe that Sheila uses (and even I can make) that is fail-safe. We sometimes prepare it ahead and serve it as a side dish if we’re expecting a crowd.

A couple of thoughts: It looks like a lot of instructions, but you’re boiling noodles, grating cheese, making a sauce, and putting it together in layers – like lasagna. No bodies were found while making the latest batch. Promise.  🙂

Here’s our famous Mac & Cheese recipe:

 

The Kerrians' Famous Mac & Cheese

Sheila Kerrian
tasty comfort food
Print Recipe
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 20 minutes
Course Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 4

Equipment

  • 2 quart baking dish
  • 3 quart pot

Ingredients
  

Noodles

  • 1 8 oz box small elbow noodles
  • 2 teaspoons sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon butter or margarine for boiling water, to keep noodles from clumping
  • 1 teaspoon butter for tossing noodles

White Sauce

  • 4 Tablespoons butter
  • 5 Tablespoons flour
  • 4 cups milk
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 pinch ground black pepper

Additional Ingredients

  • 12 oz sharp cheddar, grated
  • 2 cups croutons, seasoned  (we use the garlic & herb variety)
  • 1 cup bacon, crisp, crumbled   *optional
  • 1 whole tomato *optional

Instructions
 

Noodles

  • Bring 1 and 1/2 quarts water to boil in a 3 quart pot, add 2 teaspoons sea salt and stir.
  • Add dry noodles and 1 teaspoon margarine to boiling salted water and stir.
  • Boil noodles until fork tender, stirring frequently (about 20 mins).
  • (While noodles are boiling, prepare the White Sauce.)
  • Thoroughly drain the noodles, toss with 1 teaspoon butter, and set aside.
  • Preheat oven to 375.

White Sauce

  • In one quart pot, melt 4 Tablespoons butter on medium heat, being careful not to burn it.
  • Add 1 Tablespoon flour, 1 teaspoon sea salt, and stir until well blended.
  • Add 4 more Tablespoons flour, 1 Tablespoon at a time, stirring each until well-blended and the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pot.
  • Remove from heat. Add 1 cup milk (1/4  cup at a time) stirring until smooth, without clumps.
  • Return to heat and gradually add 3 more cups milk, while stirring. As the sauce thickens, stir to keep it from sticking to the pot and/or clumping. It is ready when it is the consistency of creamy gravy.
  • Add pinch of black pepper. Remove from heat and set aside. It will thicken a bit more while sitting.

Cheese and Assembly

  • Grate all of the cheese and set aside.
  • Use a 2-quart baking dish. You will be assembling the mac & cheese in layers (like lasagna).
  • Spread 1/4 cup of sauce on bottom of baking dish.
  • Spread 1/3 of the noodles in the bottom.
  • Spread 1/3 of the remaining white sauce on the noodles.
  • Sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese on top of the sauce.
  • Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the croutons on top of the cheese.
  • Repeat the layers twice more, but with the top layer, crumble the remaining croutons and spread evenly on top.
  • Bake at 375 until heated through and cheese is bubbly, about 20 minutes, no lid.
  • Serve with salad.

Notes

Options: Create a well in the center of a whole tomato and serve mac & cheese in it.
Sprinkle crumbled bacon on top of mac & cheese as a garnish.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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KNR, p. 257 “Jalapeno Tex-Mex Cheese Bread”

 

 

 

During the pandemic, we’ve tried a few quick bread recipes, because yeast cannot be found anywhere. This bread is so creamy and moist that it’s going to be on the menu at the Kerrian house long after Covid19 has left the planet. Sheila played around with the balance of peppers, and finally decided to leave out habanero pepper, since that one is harder to find in the average grocery store. We can toast the cheesy bread for breakfast or serve it for lunch/dinner with chili.

 

Print
"Jalapeno Mexican Cheese Bread"
Author: 
Recipe type: bread
Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
 
Ingredients
  • 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon powdered garlic
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 6 ounces (1 package) shredded Mexican 3 or 4 cheese mix
  • 1/4 cup drained, diced jalapeno peppers (canned Old El Paso works well)
  • 2 Tablespoons diced fresh red bell pepper
  • 1 extra large egg
  • 1 cup 2 % milk
  • 3 Tablespoons melted margarine
Instructions
  1. Thoroughly whisk dry ingredients together in large bowl.
  2. Add shredded cheese, jalapeno peppers, and red bell pepper, and stir.
  3. Combine milk, egg, and butter in small bowl and beat lightly with a fork.
  4. Make a well in the center of the cheese/flour combination and pour the liquid into the well. Blend dry and wet ingredients together with a large spoon, being careful to spread the peppers throughout.
  5. Pour the mixture into a greased and floured 9”x5” bread pan.
  6. Bake for 45+ minutes in 350 degree oven until golden brown on top and done in the center - skewer inserted in center will come out clean. Edges of the loaf should pull away from the sides of the pan in final five minutes of baking.
  7. Cool in the pan on a rack. Slice, serve and enjoy.

 

First and foremost, the listed ingredients have been easy to find at the store. We make extra every time and pass it around to the neighbors. Give it a try.  🙂

 

* Photos taken in the Kerrian Kitchen

 

 

 

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KNR, p. 255 “Easy Chicken Soup”

 

Honestly, it’s been odd doing the grocery shopping during this time of shortages. I head to the usual aisles for the produce and find a ready supply of celery and carrots, but not always potatoes of any kind. Fresh onions and garlic? None in sight for days. Our store makes rotisserie chicken every day, so when we can’t find raw chicken in the meat section, we grab a cooked garlic roast chicken which can serve four hungry people – more if you make soup with it.

 

We picked this soup recipe for Kerrian’s Notebook because the ingredients have been available every day, no matter which large grocery store we visit. We’ve made it several times during the last three weeks, so it’s definitely been taste-tested. Adjust the spices to your family’s palate.

 

Print
"Easy Chicken Soup"
Author: 
Recipe type: Soup
Cuisine: American
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4 to 6 servings
 
Ingredients
  • 1 32ounce box of low sodium chicken broth (Swanson’s has a nice organic version)
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1.5 cups sliced fresh baby carrots
  • 1.5 cups diced fresh celery, 1/4 inch pieces
  • 1 cup canned diced potatoes
  • 1/2 cup potato water from diced potato can
  • 1 heaping teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 heaping teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 cooked rotisserie chicken
  • 1/2 cup canned young sweet peas
Instructions
  1. In large soup pot, sprinkle sea salt evenly on bottom of pan.
  2. Add carrots, celery, and one cup of the chicken broth, cover the pot and simmer on medium high heat until carrots and celery are tender, ten to fifteen minutes, stirring every five minutes.
  3. While celery and carrots are simmering, chop the rotisserie chicken into 1/2 inch pieces, (about 3 cups) and set aside.
  4. Reduce heat to medium, add diced potatoes, potato water, garlic powder, and onion powder to pot and stir.
  5. Add 3 cups chicken broth to the pot and stir.
  6. Add 3 cups chopped chicken to the pot and stir until well mixed.
  7. Cover pot and heat soup mixture for about ten minutes until it bubbles around the edges, stirring occasionally.
  8. Add peas to the pot, tossing gently, and heat another five minutes.
  9. Remove from heat and serve with crusty bread or crackers.

 

As with any home prepared food, the leftovers keep for up to four days in the refrigerator.

Good news: it can be frozen in individual portion containers, and freezing extends the shelf life for two weeks. So double the recipe and you’ll have enough for another night. You might want to add more chicken broth when reheating.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

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