Food, For The Love Of..., Recipe
Macaroni and Cheese With Veggies And More! #UncommonFlavors #pecorinoromano #asiagocheesePDO #asiagocheese
I have five kids – ages 12 to 30. I have spent decades eating macaroni and cheese that I hate! Why? Because powdered cheese is not CHEESE! Try explaining that to the kids though.
I figure I have spent far too much time eating that so I decided to try my hand at a more adult version of Macaroni and Cheese!
The cheeses I am using in this recipe are Aged Asiago Cheese PDO. Asiago is cow’s milk cheese from the northeastern region of Italy. It is considered a mountain or Alpine cheese and can vary in flavor depending on its aging. This is a hard cheese, crumbly type of cheese;
Fresh Asiago cheese PDO – a soft cheese; and…
…lastly Pecorino Romano PDO! Pecorino Romano is a sheep’s milk cheese (‘pecora‘ is the Italian word for sheep) that is typically aged for 8 months to 1 year.
I have never made homemade, fully from scratch macaroni and cheese before so I was very nervous.
I started with 2 cups dry elbow macaroni – boiled it (based on the package instructions).
Don’t forget to lay a bamboo spoon across the boiling pot of pasta – it works! Your pasta will not boil over.
Once the macaroni was done and in the strainer – I put 1 cup of milk (I used skim but whole would have been better if I’d have had it), 1 stick of butter and a whole bunch of fresh ground mixed peppercorns. You can never have enough pepper! Next time I will use just 3/4 cup of milk to make it a little thicker.
In no exact measurements – I added approximately one cup of shaved cheeses to the hot milk mixture.
The three cheeses didn’t fully melt but I used a whisk and mixed them up the best I could.
Add the macaroni and cheese back to the hot liquid mixture and blend well.
Add some assorted steamed vegetables then serve warm. You can put it in the oven and add some bread crumbs to get a crispy top but it is far too delicious to wait that long!
Now, the kids will definitely not eat macaroni and cheese with vegetables in it but have no fear – I got them to eat by stuffing a burger with macaroni and cheese. The veggies are hidden and they just keep eating because it is so delicious and they have no idea they are eating veggies!
Now… To get this exact macaroni and cheese make sure you are using Asiago PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) meaning very rigorous standards of quality apply. Also make sure you are using Pecorino Romano – not all Romano cheeses are Pecorino – Pecorino is one of the oldest cheeses in the world.
Learn more HERE
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This looks really good!
Macaroni and cheese can be a very heavy dish and I am glad you have added some delicious veggies to give it my nutrition. Love your photographs too 🙂
I love macaroni ..it’s my fav..your recipe tempting me to try out today only..extra cheese with macaroni is utterly delicious
Whooo… my husband would love this! I love to try this for our dinner night. Thank you for sharing 🙂
I love macaroni and cheese, it’s one of my staple foods when I don’t feel like cooking a heavy lunch. Haven’t tried it with vegetables, so it’s something I’m looking forward to making.
I really like macaroni and cheese and I like Asiago cheese but I have never had them together. My grandkids love mac and cheese also but not sure they would eat it with the extras lol. Looks great though to me.
mac & cheese is one of my fav meal ever! loving it! especially when my bf does it! pecorino is such a good cheese!
Macaroni and cheese is one of my very favorite meals. Homemade is the best kind to make
Macaroni and chese are quite heavy meal but I love it! I always paired it with brewed coffee to keep me awake during my busy days.