gouda and mild cheddar mac & cheese

i’ve been doing a lot of taste testing…so many products…and some i just never want to eat again.

pasta, well, that’s a staple around here. we are big pasta people. big. as in huge. as in, if i could eat pasta every night i would. as in the only food i really miss is when i go out to eat, a fat plate of gnocchi or ravioli. oh gosh i love ravioli. i think i was italian in my previous life…really, i had to be….

anyway, taste testing…taste testing = torture, until of course you find that product you can’t live with out. and then you harass your local grocer cause if you eat it, they should sell it…it does’t work that way, i tried.

tons of products out there. some that i found the hard way, others by asking friends…by friends i mean jackie. she’s my go to gfree person. i mean, i guess i should apologize eventually for the frantic texts and phone calls…one day, but if i was jackie i would expect more. ok? ok.

so when i found out that gluten could possibly be the culprit for my wonky digestion issues i went shopping and bought everything. everything as in one of everything. i went through quinoa pastas, rice pastas…you name it. and then there was bread crumbs…what the…i just wanted a freakin good bread crumb. cause let me tell you, breading cutlets with nasty crumbs and hearing everyone complaining just doesn’t work here. i hear enough complaining.

after trying tons of products that just didn’t work i came upon bionaturae. i was thrilled, and because i’m so scared they will one day disappear (i’m sure they won’t) i buy way to much. because hey, having a good gfree pasta around is not such a bad idea. right? right. so i stocked up on penne, elbows, you name it.

and then there’s those bread crumbs. dear lord i love these. this is a jackie find. i am a huge fan, aleia’s makes not only plain and italian bread crumbs but panko too. i swear to you, amazing.

so with all this in my head, and a morning of cooking with jackie, i came home craving mac and cheese. not boxed, although i have to tell you, annie’s makes a good gfree mac and cheese. really. i digress, again. man, that’s a bad habit. so anyway, i was craving a creamy, bread crumb topped mac and cheese. so i went with it…

i grabbed my cheese, some milk and cream…my little package of elbows and went to work…

gouda and mild cheddar mac & cheese

1 12oz package of bionaturae elbows + an additional 4oz
4 tbl butter + 1 tbl for end of recipe
2 tbl gluten free flour (i use cup4cup)
1 cup of 2% milk
1 cup of heavy cream
6 oz of your favorite cheese (3oz gouda + 3 oz mild cheddar)
1/4 cup gf italian bread crumbs
1/4 cup gf panko

pre-heat your oven to 350
boil a pot of water and cook your pasta to your desired liking (since it bakes in that cheesy cream sauce i cook al dente)
in an oven/stove proof pot (dutch oven or some other sort of product) melt your butter and quickly whisk in your flour. when flour and butter are well combined continue whisking for another minute. add milk, cream and continue whisking. bring to a simmer and keep mixing and whisking till sauce thickens.
add grated cheese to sauce and continue whisking. taste, season with salt and pepper as needed.
drain pasta and toss in pot with cheese sauce.
top with breadcrumbs and then top bread crumbs with dabs of butter. bake at 350 for 30=40 minutes or until top browns and cheese gets all bubbly.

after all this i really must tell you, even though i think testing products is torture, i secretly like it. sshhhh.

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