Cabot Clothbound Cheddar Mac and Cheese
Jasper Hill has so many cheese options, and this Cabot Clothbound Cheddar Mac and Cheese is the perfect culmination of their offerings in a bowl of comfort food.
Back in March when we participated in Casey’s March Macness, Tony put a lot of time and care into selecting his bracket. He evaluated each step and how he thought people would react to different recipes. Me? I just looked at each category and created my bracket based on how much I like the ingredients in certain recipes. My entire goal was to beat Tony’s bracket and somehow I won the whole thing!
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The sponsors were incredibly generous and one of the prizes was a gift card to Jasper Hill Farm. Their entire site is a mac and cheese dream. I stocked up on nearly five pounds of cheese, a jar of sweet onion confit, and a 1.5 pound tray of mac and cheese.
What does one do when they have a fridge full of cheese and fun condiments? Make mac and cheese, of course.
Remember the mac and cheese theory? The rule where our mac and cheese should include an opener and closer cheese. This recipe stretches those rules a little bit but with surprisingly delicious results. Onion confit serves as the opener while Cabot Clothbound and Jasper Hill’s Conundrum Cheddar work beautifully as closer cheeses.
While the sauce is delightful, the real beauty in this cheddar mac and cheese recipe is in the toppings. Savory Onion confit adds a bold flavor that compliments the cheeses. Chopped chives lend a freshness that balances out the entire bowl.
Cabot Clothbound Cheddar Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 16 oz Pasta
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp Flour
- 2 cups Whole Milk
- 1 cup grated Clothbound Cheddar
- 1 cup grated Conundrum Cheddar
- salt to taste
- 1/4 cup Savory Onion Confit
- Chives as garnish
Instructions
- Prepare the pasta according to package directions.
Prepare the sauce
- Pre heat your milk in the microwave for 45 seconds – just enough to take the chill out of it.
- Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat and let it heat until it becomes foamy.
- Mix in flour. Cook it for a minute while stirring constantly
- Slowly add warmed milk to the butter mixture 1/4 cup at a time. Whisk it continually until combined.
- Once all of the milk is incorporated, continue to heat the sauce while stirring. Do not let it boil. The sauce is ready for the cheese when you rub a small amount between your fingers and it feels silky.
- Remove from heat and stir in your cheese until it’s melted and mixed into the sauce.
- Once the cheese is incorporated, use a cooked noodle to taste your sauce. If it doesn’t taste cheesy enough try adding a little salt to bring out the flavor.
- Combine the pasta and sauce. Top with dollops of savory onion confit and chives.