Comfort foods

Everyone has one.

A food that makes everything in your little corner all better.

A dish that you can eat your fill of and not stop because it's just sooooo good.

I have a few comfort foods that I take refuge in a couple times a year.

Home made macaroni and cheese with Cabot's Hunter cheddar is right at the top of the list. With cracker crumb and butter topping. Extra creamy. And if you serve grilled sausages with it, even better.

Shepard's pie is up there too. I will founder myself on this dish without even thinking about it, it's that good.

Salmon pea wiggle. It's just that, canned salmon, canned peas and 'wiggle' - a medium white sauce. Served over crushed saltines. Foundering time! This one is apparently an aquired taste, my older son hates it, the younger one asks me for it every time he visits. I can't imagine not liking/loving it.

Today's recipe is for the macaroni and cheese.

These measurements are approximate. I've been making this for so long, I stopped measuring decades ago.

3 cups (uncooked) elbow macaroni
2 quarts boiling water
1 tsp salt

Put salt into the water. Boil it. Add the macaroni and cook until done, about 10 minutes at sea level. Yes it does take longer at higher altitudes.

Sauce:

1/4 cup butter
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper, or to taste
1/4 cup flour
8 ounces Cabot's Hunter cheese, shredded
2 to 3 cups milk

Melt the butter in a 2 quart saucepan with the salt and pepper. Slowly stir in the flour until all of it is incorporated.

Add 1 cup of the milk, stirring to blend with the flour mixture. Cook until it starts to thicken. Slowly add another cup of milk, stirring until it starts thickening again. If you think this is thin enough, you won't need any more milk, but remember, the macaroni soaks up some of the sauce.

Once you have the sauce thickened, add the shredded cheese, stirring until it's all melted.

Check the thickness again, this is your chance to use that last cup of milk.

The sauce should be thicker than most gravies, but not as thick as sausage gravy.

Drain the macaroni and pour the sauce into it, stirring it until all the macaroni is coated.

Pour into a 9x13 pan that has been buttered.

Melt 1/4 cup butter
Crush one sleeve of saltine crackers. They need to be small, but not powdered. The big chunks are good all soaked in butter...

Sprinkle the topping over the macaroni and sauce.

Bake at 350° for 30 to 45 minutes or until the edges start to brown.

Yum factor = 50