Something Familiar: Homemade Mac and Cheese
A "trial run" of summer cooking.
On Sunday, we did a “trial run” of summer cooking. I was leaving the next day for New York. My two teens had their ingredients and ✨plans✨ for cooking for the week, but I wouldn’t be around to help (and Dad works from home but is in meetings all day).
They wanted to test their ability to navigate the kitchen and prepare a meal on their own. Mind you, they’re not starting from ground zero. Both have cooked before, but minimally and with my help.
Q (the 14-year-old) was in charge of the meal, and he chose homemade mac and cheese. It’s something I’ve made for many years and came from a college cookbook I owned once in my life. Super simple.
The problem? I don’t have an exact recipe. I’ve made it so many times that I just wing it with the amounts. So communicating it to someone else is a bit of a trick. It needs:
Elbow Macaroni noodles
Handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese
A few scoops of either plain yogurt or sour cream
A few tablespoons of butter
A few squirts of Dijon mustard
He set out to boil a large pot of water and asked how much he should make. I’ve never really thought about it - just dumped noodles into the pot based on my assessment of how hungry everyone seems. I told him 2 oz per person. We have a scale in the kitchen for measuring ingredients.
He waited for the water to boil and dumped in the pasta. A few minutes later, he said, “Is the water supposed to be black?” To which I replied, “WHAT?” And he laughed and said, “Just kidding.” Such is life with a teenager.
He managed to drain the big pot of hot pasta with the help of his older sibling while they debated the use of the word “strainer” versus “colander.”
I explained my vibes-based method of adding ingredients and realized that I’m not going to be a great leader during their cooking adventures. (Honestly, I’m a pretty middling cook myself, having barely cooked anything until I was done with college.)
Q noted that the butter wasn’t melting very fast, to which I replied, “Oh yeah, I guess I usually put that in first and cover it with the hot pasta so it cooks faster.” Whoops.
But after a few minutes of stirring, the cheese had melted into the other ingredients and formed a sauce.
The finished product was gone VERY quickly. So, note for the future: when people are hungry, make more than 2 oz. per person.
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