[Recipe] "The Working Girl's" Avocado Pasta

I have a lot of energy-- what I don't have is time.  I work long, unpredictable hours and cram whatever I can into the little time left over.  And so I'm always excited by sexy words like "multi-tasking" and "30-minute (or less) dinner."  (Also "yoga pants," "doggy cuddles," and "Dr. Spencer Reid," but that might be TMI.)

Today's recipe is a gem because it can all be done in 20 minutes and is delightfully, deceptively rich and creamy when, in actuality, it's light and healthy.  The perfect weekday recipe for any girl who has a "head for business and a bod for sin."  (I'm just kidding, but this infamous line from The Working Girl seemed only apt.)

"The Working Girl's" Avocado Pasta
A recipe by Damn Delicious
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Overall Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients
12 ounces spaghetti (though you can use any pasta you like)
2 ripe avocados, halved, seeded, and peeled
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
the juice of one lemon, freshly squeezed
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/3 cup olive oil
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup corn kernels (I like to steam corn and then scrape the kernels off, but you can used canned corn as well, drained and rinsed)

Directions
1.  In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.
2.  To make the avocado sauce, combine avocados, basil, garlic, and lemon juice in the bowl of a food processor; season with salt and pepper to taste.  With the motor running, add olive oil in a slow stream until emulsified; set aside.
* Note:  Don't be afraid to slightly overseason at this step-- the sauce will need to be spread over 12 ounces of pasta and may need the extra seasoning.  Alternatively, taste again once the sauce has been mixed in and salt to taste.

3.  In a large bowl, combine the pasta, avocado sauce, cherry tomatoes, and corn.

[Sunday Supper Menu] "Summer's Bounty" Menu - Roast Chicken and Summer Produce

I really like seasonal menus.  Many restaurants have them, but the one that stands out to me is Park Avenue, a restaurant in New York City that not only changes menus with the seasons but its decor as well.

While the decor in my apartment changes little (though occasionally I'll have seasonal flowers), Sunday Supper often follows the seasons.  It's unfortunately already the tail-end of summer, but to the extent you'll have company over one last time, I present the "Summer's Bounty" menu.

"Summer's Bounty" Endive and Sugar Snaps with Parmesan Dressing
a recipe by Jean-Georges Vongerichten
Buy the full recipebook here on Amazon!

This salad recipe makes me want to join one of those farm collectives-- they're called CSAs (community-supported agriculture) (and you can check them out here if interested).  The reality is that my schedule likely wouldn't allow for weekly preparation of 5 random pounds of produce a week, but a girl can dream.  Or, you know, just buy enough summer produce for a 12-person dinner party.

Ingredients
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
3 tablespoons grapeseed or other neutral oi
1-1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 ounces sugar snap peas, trimmed and strings removed
4 yellow or red Belgain endive, leaves separated
1/2 cup chopped fresh herb leaves, preferably a mix of flat-leaf parsley, tarragon, dill, and chervil

Directions
1.  Combine the cheese, vinegar, lime juice, mustard, salt, and pepper in a blender.  Puree until smooth.  With the machine running, add the oils through the feed tube in a slow, steady stream to emulsify the mixture.

2.  Bring a pot of water to a boil.  Fill a large bowl with ice and water.  Generously salt the boiling water and then add the snap peas.  Cook just until bright green, about 30 seconds.  Drain, transfer to the ice water, and drain again.  Slice very thinly at an angle.

3.  Toss the endive and snap peas with the dressing.  Top with the herbs.

"Summer's Bounty" Parmesan-Crusted Summer Squash - Recipe in This Post

"Summer's Bounty" Tagliatelle with Spinach, Mascarpone, and Parmesan
a recipe by Jamie Oliver
Buy the full recipebook here on Amazon!

I wanted a starch that would be light and tasty, allowing the chicken and chorizo to shine.  This very simple pasta fit the bill exactly.

Ingredients
1 lb. tagliatelle or spaghetti
olive oil
2 teaspoons butter
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1/2 a nutmeg, freshly grated
14 oz. fresh spinach, washed thoroughly and finely sliced
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup heavy cream
5 oz. mascarpone cheese
2 handfuls of freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or more-- to taste)

Directions
1.  Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, add the pasta, and cook according to the package instructions.
2.  Meanwhile, get a frying pan or wok warm, add a drizzle of olive oil, the butter, garlic, and nutmeg.  When the butter melts, add the spinach.  After 5 minutes, it will have wilted down and will be nice and dark.  A lot of the liquid will have cooked away at this point.  Season with salt and pepper t taste, then add the cream, mascarpone, and a little ladle of cooking water from the pasta.  Let this come to a simmer and then season again.

3.  Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water, then stir it into the spinach sauce.  Add 2 handfuls of Parmesan cheese and toss everything together.  Loosen to a nice, silky consistency with some of the reserved cooking water so it doesn't become too dry.  Check once more for seasoning and serve right away.

"Rustic Charm" Spanish Roast Chicken - Recipe in This Post (To Come)

"Summer Lovin'" Strawberry Tiramisu - Recipe in This Post

Regular readers of my blog/followers of my Facebook or Instagram feed have likely figured out my not-so-secret secret: I'm very much into strawberries.  They are such a lovely summer fruit and yet easy to work with in baking (as opposed to, for example, watermelon, another summer love of mine that is somewhat more difficult to incorporate into delicious goodies-- although perhaps that should be my next challenge... ).   This strawberry tiramisu was a very popular, refreshing ending to the Sunday Supper summer run.

[Recipe] "Au Revoir" Duck Confit Pasta

Moving can be one of the most stressful and bittersweet experiences of anyone's life, and it's something that young adults actually experience quite often before they "settle down."  You move away to college, perhaps a few times while you're in college, and then again when you start your first job or go on to grad school, rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat.  Moving is easier when you have less things, of course, and less hours to commit to school or work.  I'm much more likely to hire movers than to spend hours packing and unpacking myself, but even then, I have to spend a good amount of time organizing valuables and breakables and perishables.

My pantry is always full of cans and spices, and I've had to shed quite a few over the years as time gets away from me or as I move cross-country.  I've also picked up quite a few treasures over the years as my friends move.  My most recent gift was a large can of duck confit direct from Paris, set to expire in a little more than a month. It became the focus of my next Sunday Supper dinner party.

"Au Revoir" Duck Confit Pasta
a recipe by Emeril Lagasse
basic pasta recipe by Smitten Kitchen

The thing I most regret willfully donating in a move is an ornate, gorgeous gilded gold mirror that was larger than me.  It made its way over to my new city, but I had no space for it in my tiny starter apartment and I was forced to give it away to the guys who moved me.  There's a spot near the entryway of my current apartment that misses it dearly, and I know it'll be hard for me to find another just like it.

How about you, dear reader?  Is there anything you lost, purposely or not, in a move that you really wish you could get back?

Fresh Pasta - Ingredients
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 to 2 tablespoons water, if needed

Duck Confit Pasta - Ingredients
up to 1/4 cup duck fat
2 tablespoons each of finely diced carrots, celery root, Shiitake mushrooms, onions, and beets
2 cups chunky meat, pulled from duck confit
1 tablespoon chopped thyme
1 cup chicken stock
2/3 pound pasta sheets, freshly torn into pieces
salt and black pepper
Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Fresh Pasta - Directions
1.  Combine all of the pasta ingredients in a food processor.  Run the machine until the mixture begins to form a ball.  You're looking for a dough that is firm but not sticky.  If needed, add water at a drop at a time until it comes together.  Place ball of dough on a lightly floured surface and invert a bowl over it.  Let it rest for an hour.  You'll have about 10 ounces or a little less than 2/3 pound of fresh pasta dough.
2.  Get your work area ready-- one option is to line a large tray with waxed paper.  Dust the waxed paper with flour.  Keep more waxed paper and flour nearby.

3.  Working with a quarter of the dough at a time, run in through your pasta roller on the widest setting (usually "0"), then repeat this process with the roller set increasingly smaller ("1," "2," "3," etc.) until the pasta is very thin.
4.  If you find your dough sticking, lightly flour it.  If it gets too big to handle, cut it in half.  If the piece gets too wide for the machine or becomes annoyingly irregularly shaped, you can re-"fold" the dough by folding the sides of the dough into the middle, like an envelope, and press it flat.  Then, run the piece back through the machine with the open sides up and down on the widest setting again ("0"), working your way thinner.  This allows the machine to "press" any trapped air out.
5.  Lay your pasta on the floured waxed paper in a single layer, trying to keep the pieces from touching.  Score the pasta sheets with a knife into 1/2- to 1-inch strips.
6.  Heat a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.  Because the pasta is thin, it only needs to be in the pot for about a minute or two to cook al dante.  Drain.

7.  Finely dice all of the vegetables.

8.  Then it's time for the star of the dish, the duck confit.  If you've bought a can of it, the duck confit is sitting in a lovely vat of duck fat.

9.  In a large saute pan, heat 1 teaspoon of duck fat, add vegetables and duck confit, and cook 4 minutes, tossing often.

10.  Add thyme and stock, bring to a boil, and allow liquid to begin reducing.

11.  Add pasta directly to the saute pan.  Toss to combine, adding more duck fat for flavor if desired.  Season to taste; black pepper goes well with this dish.
12.  Top with freshly grated cheese.

[Recipe] "You Spin Me Right Round, Baby" Butternut Squash and Sweet Sausage Lasagna

KiKi and I like a lot of the same things, though we look nothing alike.  She is tall and blonde, while I am stereotypically Asian-- short, with dark hair and dark eyes.  But we both love to cook (obviously), play with puppies, do DIY crafts, drink wine, watch documentaries (seriously), dance to 80's music and, most recently-- we're both in love with aerial ribbon dancing, though neither of us is particularly good at it.

Aerial ribbon dancing is exactly as it sounds-- there are silks ribbons/streamers hanging from the ceiling, and we dangle and spin in them.  The hope, at the end of our series of classes, is to be able to do something similar to this:

So graceful.  Aerial ribbon dancing, of course, can be much more taxing and fast-paced than this-- think Cirque du Soleil-- but we're not delusional.

We're inevitably famished after aerial ribbon dancing class, so it should come as no surprise that we've rekindled our culinary romance.

"You Spin Me Right Round, Baby" Butternut Squash and Sweet Sausage Lasagnaa recipe by The Kitchn

Ingredients
1 medium butternut squash (about 2-1/2 pounds)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-1/2 pounds sweet Italian sausage, casings removed (or loose sweet Italian sausage)
1 pound fresh spinach
1 pound dry lasagna noodles
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
6 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound fresh mozzarella, torn into bite-sized pieces
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Butter, to grease the dish

Directions
1.  Cook the butternut squash.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Peel the squash and cut the neck into round slices, 1/4-inch thick.  When you get to the bottom of the squash, slice it in half, remove the seeds and pulp, and slice each half into 1/4-inch thick half-moons.  Place the slices on a large baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and toss to evenly coat.  Spread the squash in an even layer and roast until tender, about 20 minutes, flipping halfway through.

2.  Cook the sausage.  Place a large skillet over medium-high heat and, once hot, add the sausage to the pan.  Once it begins to brown, use a wooden spoon to break the sausage into small pieces.  Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until uniformly browned and cooked through.

3.  Cook the noodles.  While cooking the sausage, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Stir in the noodles and cook until al dente.  Remove using tongs and place in a single layer on clean kitchen towels or, in multiple layers over drizzled EVOO. (The EVOO needs to be between each layer to prevent sticking.) 

4.  Blanch the spinach.  Fill a bowl with ice and cold water, and place it near the stove.  Bring the pasta water back to a boil and add the spinach.  Cook until wilted and bright green.  Scoop the spinach from the water with a slotted spoon and transfer to the ice water bath.  Once cool, drain the spinach, squeeze it of excess water, and then chop finely.

5.  Make the bechamel.  In a deep saucepan or medium pot, melt the butter over medium heat.  Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes.  Slowly pour in the milk, whisking to combine smoothly.  Add the nutmeg and salt and continue cooking, stirring often, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

6.  Assemble and cook the lasagna.  Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Grease the bottom of a 2-quart baking dish.  Add a single layer of noodles, and spread about a fourth of the bechamel over top.  Top with half the spinach and a third of the mozzarella.  Add another layer of noodles, a fourth of the bechamel, half the sausage, half the squash, and another third of the mozzarella.  Add a third layer of noodles, a fourth of the bechamel, the second half of the spinach, the second half of the sausage, the second half of the squash, and the final third of the mozzarella.  Add one more layer of noodles and the final fourth of the bechamel.  Finally, sprinkle with Parmigiano Reggiano over the top of the lasagna.

Bake the lasagna until hot and the cheese has melted, about 30 minutes.  If you'd like, finish for a few minutes under the broiler until the top develops golden brown spots.  Cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

[Recipe] Mac and Cheese Cook-off: Fall-tastic Mac, Attempt #3

KiKi and I have very different cooking styles, so it's interesting when we get in the kitchen together.  I chalk it up to my upbringing—I'm 100% Taiwanese, and my parents made very little Western food growing up.  And when my mom started teaching me to cook, albeit reluctantly, I became comfortable with moving, spicing, and all sorts of other things in the kitchen in a very Asian way.  Meaning that, now that I'm older and have bought a ton of cooking books and am working my way through them slowly, I can safely say that the way you cook Western food is just very different from the way you cook Asian food, and it requires a different skill set.

All this to say, I'm not as comfortable as she is with Western sauces and foods, like bechamel, because I've never encountered them in cooking prior to the past two or fewer years.  I'm much more likely to look up and then stick to (largely) a recipe when cooking Western.  KiKi, on the other hand, is constantly subbing out ingredients that she already knows goes into things, not measuring anything, and sometimes not looking at recipes at all—which impresses me.  It's exactly how I cook Asian food.  It's something that comes with time and experience (and good instincts help, of course), and I've successfully been doing that in my baking for a few years now, so I'm hoping I'll step out of my comfort zone in Western cooking soon, too.  In the meantime, though, I just watch and follow KiKi's lead.

Fall-tastic Mac 3.0 is fairly different from Fall-tastic Mac 1.0.  In a lot of ways, it's better, but it can definitely use more tweaking.  More on that later.

As before, there are three major components to this mac 'n' cheese: the brussels sprouts, the pumpkin-beer-braised short ribs, and the actual pumpkin mac 'n' cheese.

"Fall-tastic" Mac - Iteration #3
an original recipe by tammiest (the Passionfruit Fashionista)

First, the Pumpkin-Beer-Braised Short Ribs:

This batch of short ribs was better than the previous one.  We used Blue Moon's special pumpkin beer, which was infinitely better than the pumpkin ale I used in version 1.0, for starters, and we also used beef stock instead of vegetable this time—though I did have to run to the grocery store down the street at the last minute because I, again, forgot that I didn't have any on hand.  It's funny because I love vegetables and don't mind cooking or eating vegetarian every once in a while, but meat really makes a big difference in taste, especially when it comes to stock.

Ingredients
2-1/2 lbs. beef short ribs
2+ tablespoons unsalted butter
3 garlic cloves, crushed
3 bottles pumpkin beer
5 cups beef stock
4 bay leaves
kosher salt
black pepper
cayenne pepper

Directions
1.  Season the ribs with salt and pepper.  In a large pot, melt 2 or more tablespoons of butter.  Add the ribs and brown them in the melted butter.

2.  Once the ribs have finished browning, add the bay leaves and crushed garlic cloves, along with a bit of cayenne pepper.  Add the pumpkin beer and beef stock before covering the pan with the lid.  Bring the pot to a boil before bringing down to a simmer on low for 3 hours, at which point the meat should be falling off the bone.

Second, the Brussels Sprouts: 

For version 3.0, we decided to go with KiKi's tactic of using brussels sprouts as a topping to the mac 'n' cheese as opposed to a mixer.  This ensures that the vegetables stay crunchy (and thus texturally interesting) because we bake and broil the mac 'n' cheese just before serving.

Something else KiKi does differently is that she actually slices the brussels sprouts before baking them.  I think, for purposes of the mac 'n' cheese, this is a smart thing to do—again with the textural interest—but, for purposes of snacking, it was less satisfying.  Their distinct nutty flavor is diminished a bit by the slicing because there's more browning and charring that occurs, and I think I must love brussels sprouts too much for them to taste like anything else!

Ingredients
1-1/2 lbs. brussels sprouts
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2.  Cut off the brown ends of the brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves.  Slice them as thinly as possible.  Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Pour them on a sheet pan or in a roasting pan, then dab the unsalted butter on top.  Roast for 30-40 minutes, mixing every 5-7 minutes, until slightly crisp.

Third, the Pumpkin Mac 'n' Cheese:

You'll see that the cheese this time around was very, very different from 1.0.  In some ways, it's much better—the easiest reason is that it was much cheesier overall.  And I loved the little kick of cayenne pepper we added, and I'm a big fan of the mascarpone we chose to use this time.  But I also think that the type and amount of cheddar cheese we used was a little too overwhelming for my tastes.  KiKi's blog states we added smoked gouda to the cheese mixture—but she's wrong.  We didn't.  We forgot and had to add it to the topping.  To me, this cheese was a little one dimensional, and you could barely taste the pumpkin.  We're planning to remedy that in the next round, though.  Suggestions listed below in the "Verdict."

Ingredients

3-1/2 cups milk

1 cup pumpkin puree

(at least) 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

(at least) 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 lb. elbow macaroni

7 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

10-14 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded

8 oz. mascarpone cheese

kosher salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1.  In a medium-sized pot or saucepan, melt and brown the butter over medium-high heat.  This is a process that takes longer than mere melting (and so you'll have to watch the stove), but it gives the butter (and consequently whatever you're making) a deeper, complex, almost nutty flavor.  You want to melt the butter past its melting point-- it will start to foam before it subsides and begins to brown.

2.  Once the butter has just begun to brown, add the pumpkin puree, using a whisk to combine.

3.  Add the flour slowly to the pumpkin-butter mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring and combining completely before adding each new tablespoon of flour.  This roux mixture should brown up as well (but, again, watch to make sure it doesn't overbrown or begin to blacken).

4.  Once the roux is finished and has cooked, fully mixed, for a few minutes, begin adding the whole milk in 3/4-cup increments.  Make sure to stir and combine completely, as well as bring almost to a boil, in between increments.

5.  Season to taste with the salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper.
6.  Let the bechamel simmer (not boil) to thicken the sauce.
7.  While the bechamel is simmering, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  Once the water comes to a boil, add a generous amount of salt and then the pasta.  Boil pasta for 10 to 12 minutes or until al dente, stirring occasionally.  Drain pasta and set aside.
8.  Add the cheese to the drained pasta.  Combine well.
9.  Turn off the heat on the bechamel and pour it into and over the pasta and cheese mixture.  Combine well.

Finally, combine for Fall-tastic Mac:

Hats off to KiKi-- she was right.  Brussels sprouts topping was amazing.

Additional Ingredients
Panko bread crumbs, enough to cover the top of the mac 'n' cheese pan (about 1 cup)
4 oz. smoked gouda cheese, grated
unsalted butter

Directions
1.  Shred the pumpkin-beer braised short ribs (they should fall easily from the bone and shred even more easily with a fork) and mix into the pumpkin mac 'n' cheese.  Adjust seasoning as needed.
2.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
3.  Pour the combined mac 'n' cheese into a large baking pan.
4.  Sprinkle the thinly sliced brussels sprouts, Panko bread crumbs, and 4 oz. of shredded smoked gouda cheese, on top of the mac 'n' cheese.  Dot the top with small amounts of unsalted butter.

4.  Bake the mac 'n' cheese in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes.  Broil for the last 5 minutes.

 

The Verdict

Fall-tastic Mac is clearly the winner (at least over Oktoberfest Mac).  The final tally, after both the dinner party and bringing both in to the office, is 24-5.  It doesn't mean that we're done experimenting, though, or that this recipe is perfect.  Everyone loved the short ribs themselves, and it's hard to imagine improving on them, so those are good as is.  The brussels sprouts in version 3.0, similarly, are likely not going to be changed.  A lot of people—including KiKi and myself—however, did prefer the Oktoberfest cheese to the Fall-tastic cheese.

So, a few thoughts for next time: 

1.  Slightly different cheese(s).

Like I mentioned above, I think our cheese was a little one dimensional.  We can still use cheddar, but less of it—we should add smoked gouda to the actual mixture, as well as some Gruyere.  The mascarpone was great, and we should keep it.

2.  More pumpkin flavor.  But not more pumpkin.

Allow me to explain.  The cheese we used this time around overpowered the pumpkin.  We're going to fix that by using a blend of cheeses next time—plus, we're going to substitute one cup of milk for one cup of pumpkin beer.  We're also going to add more nutmeg and some sugar to highlight the taste of pumpkin without actually adding any more pumpkin.

3.  Slightly different crumble.

We both loved the pretzel rolls so much that we're going to use them in Fall-tastic Mac!, but toasted and croutoned so they stay crunchy and texturally interesting.

Until Next Time

I really think I've been bitten by the mac 'n' cheese bug.  I have three recipes circling in my head that I plan to try out for honor's sake and one more recipe KiKi and I are going to test for the contest itself.  Stay tuned—and stay enthusiastic, 1285!  You guys are the best.

[Recipe] Mac and Cheese Cook-off: Oktoberfest Mac, Attempt #1

When KiKi first asked me to enter the Mac 'n' Cheese Cookoff with her, my feelings were tentative, lukewarm at best.  But, unsurprisingly, as time went on, I became increasingly competitive, and now I've become a little obsessed with winning.  Last year, KiKi and Junglecat J lost second place by just one vote, mainly because none of their friends (yours truly included) showed up to the event.  (In my defense, I did try to go, but my talent for getting hopelessly lost interfered, and I never made it.)

Given that I want to win, I started to get anxious that our Fall-tastic Mac—with pumpkin and brussels sprouts, two ingredients that are sadly less than universally popular—would be offputting to enough people as to jeopardize our chances for the mac 'n' cheese trophy I desperately want to display in my office.

And that's how Oktoberfest Mac* was born.  Oktoberfest Mac is beer cheese, macaroni, bratwurst with onions (the traditional way), and a topping of crumbled bacon and homemade pretzel roll croutons.  Basically, everything American, Oktoberfest, and football in one cheesy dish.  What's not to love?
* A special thank-you and shout-out to MiMi, who named this for us.

There are three major components to this mac 'n' cheese as well: the beer cheese, the bratwurst with onions, and the topping of crumbled bacon and homemade pretzel roll croutons.

Oktoberfest Mac - Iteration #1
an original recipe by tammiest (the Passionfruit Fashionista)

First, the Bratwurst with Onions:

Bratwurst is a natural choice/pairing for beer cheese, pretzels, and bacon.  This is both a good and bad thing, as our tastetesters made clear to us.  It just isn't nearly as flavorful as anything else in Oktoberfest Mac and apparently felt like a "throwaway" ingredient.  This does kind of make sense, though—I love brats, but part of the experience is definitely in the pile of condiments and not the sausage itself.  Chorizo it is not.*
* Our friend Hotpants Radio Miami ("HRM" for short) suggested swapping the bratwurst out for chorizo—which would definitely give it an extra kick—but then we couldn't in good conscience really call it an Oktoberfest Mac, could we?

Ingredients
4 bratwurst sausages
3 bottles amber ale
3 cups beef stock
2 sweet Vidalia onions, thinly sliced
2-3 tablespoons butter
kosher salt and pepper

Directions
1.  Pour the 3 bottles of amber ale and the 3 cups of beef stock into a large pot and bring to a boil.
2.  Once the liquid mixture in the pot is at a boil, drop in the thinly sliced onions and the bratwurst, still in its casing.
3.  Cook the bratwurst for the recommended cooking time (as indicated on the packaging and depending on whether the bratwurst is pre-cooked), then remove from the pot.  Allow the bratwurst to cool before thinly slicing.

4.  In a new pan, melt 2-3 tablespoons of butter.  Scoop the onions out of the beer and stock mixture and caramelize in the new pan by heating over medium-high heat and stirring occasionally.  Season with a generous amount of salt and pepper.  Cook until brown, roughly 20-30 minutes.

Second, the Beer Cheese:

It's really surprising to me the number of people who have never had or even heard of beer cheese before.  It's such a football staple!  And if it isn't yet a football staple, it will clearly have to become one, at least at any football viewing I attend—along with the homemade pretzel rolls also featured in Oktoberfest Mac (entry here).

This cheese is crazy good.  You can really taste the ale, and the mustard and cayenne give it a nice kick.  And it's not terribly difficult to make, which means I really can make it (with a few modifications, which I'll certainly blog about) for future football viewings.

Ingredients
6 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
1 bottle amber ale
2-1/2 cups whole milk
kosher salt and pepper to taste
(at least) 1 teaspoon mustard power
(at least) 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 lb. elbow macaroni
10-14 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
5 oz. fontina cheese, shredded

Directions
1.  In a medium-sized pot or saucepan, melt and brown the butter over medium-high heat.  This is a process that takes longer than mere melting (and so you'll have to watch the stove), but it gives the butter (and consequently whatever you're making) a deeper, complex, almost nutty flavor.  You want to melt the butter past its melting point—it will start to foam before it subsides and begins to brown.
2.  Once the butter has just begun to brown, add the flour slowly, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring and combining completely before adding each new tablespoon of flour.  This roux mixture should brown up as well (but, again, watch to make sure it doesn't overbrown or begin to blacken).
3.  Once the roux is finished and has cooked, fully mixed, for a few minutes, add the beer.  We used Yeungling Amber, but any amber ale will do.
4.  Once the beer has been fully incorporated with the roux, begin adding the whole milk in 3/4-cup increments.  Make sure to stir and combine completely, as well as bring almost to a boil, in between increments.
5.  Season to taste with the salt, pepper, mustard powder, and cayenne pepper.
6.  Let the bechamel simmer (not boil) to thicken the sauce.
7.  While the bechamel is simmering, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  Once the water comes to a boil, add a generous amount of salt and then the pasta.  Boil pasta for 10 to 12 minutes or until al dente, stirring occasionally.  Drain pasta and set aside.
8.  Add the cheese to the drained pasta.  Combine well.
9.  Turn off the heat on the bechamel and pour it into and over the pasta and cheese mixture.  Combine well.

Third, the Crumbled Bacon and Homemade Pretzel Roll Croutons: 

Confession: I've been obsessed with the homemade pretzel roll croutons ever since I first conceived of them.  I made the pretzel rolls themselves a day before I made them into croutons—and made extra, obviously, so KiKi and I could serve them whole to our guests.  We also initially planned to make up our own honey mustard butter, but we ran out of time.  We'll have to experiment in the future.

These pretzel rolls were so good they deserve their own post.

Once the pretzel rolls are ready, break 4 of them into 1/4-inch pieces.  These will be used for the topping, described below.

As for the crumbled bacon, heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit on broil.  They should take 15-20 minutes to brown up.  You don't want it to be too crispy, though—they'll continue baking with the mac 'n' cheese.

Finally, combine for Oktoberfest Mac:

Kiki likes toppings on her mac, and she likes to bake and broil them in the oven.  I have to admit that I concur on this method, as it melts the cheese in a very lovely way and brings all the flavors together.

Additional Ingredients
4 oz. fontina cheese, grated

Directions
1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2.  Add the sliced bratwurst and the caramelized onions to the mac 'n' cheese mixture and combine well.

2.  Pour the combined mac 'n' cheese into a large baking pan.
3.  Sprinkle croutons made from 4 pretzel rolls, the bacon crumble from 8 strips of bacon, and 4 oz. of freshly grated fontina cheese liberally on top of the mac 'n' cheese.

4.  Bake the mac 'n' cheese in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes.  This should be enough time for the bacon to crisp up, but you can also broil for the last 5 minutes.

The Verdict

KiKi and I had 8 of our friends over to my apartment for a tastetest dinner party on Sunday.  Reviews were generally positive, especially for the cheese, but every one of our friends (except one) preferred Fall-tastic Mac to Oktoberfest Mac.  The most cited reason has already been mentioned: the bratwurst seems like a bit of a throwaway ingredient, and I guess I'd have to agree.  We didn't really have to do much to it, and it kind of gets lost amongst all the other ingredients.

My biggest personal disappointment was in the pretzel roll croutons, which weren't as amazing in the Oktoberfest Mac as they are all by themselves.  Next time we could toast the pretzel rolls a bit beforehand so they also crisp up, but the reason we didn't do that in the first place is that I was worried they would lose their texture.

Ultimately, Oktoberfest Mac is losing out to Fall-tastic Mac, despite being created specifically to appeal to the "everyman."  In the words of our friend Caryn, "Think of your audience.  Who do you think is going to this Cookoff?  Probably hipsters and other types of people who love pumpkin and brussels sprouts."

Touche.

But it doesn't mean that I won't be improving on this recipe and bringing it to a house party near you.