Mac & Cheese and Friendship Cookies.

Thursday night, i was at a friend's house watching the Food Network, and the gent on TV was making Mac and Cheese. I have never tried making Mac & Cheese before, unless you count what comes in a box, so i decided to go for it. Sunday dinner was to be Mac & Cheese in the Crockpot!

So I am told the best Mac & Cheese has more than one kind of cheese, and at least one of those has to be something bold. The City Market has a cheese vendor, so i stopped there on my way home from work Friday night. Already in the fridge at home, i have two of my favorites, Mozzarella and Parmesan. The cheese vendor had a huge block of 4 year old cheddar, so i got him to chop a chunk of that off for me. That is my bold. As for creamy, i chose a Havarti with Jalapeño peppers in it. Sounds good already!

So Sunday dinner is at six, i figured to start my Crockpot late because it is not an 8 hour recipe as most others are. Early afternoon rolled around and i am bored. Tired of my cross stitch, and unable to use my computer as it is working for me, i decided to bake some cookies. Again, trying something new, i found a recipe called Friendship cookies. The description promises to be a recipe that you can whip up quickly when friends are coming over, and might even make you some new friends! And they are chocolate...so let's go! Here is the lovely picture from the cookbook.

1 Large Egg

1/2 cup cooking oil

1 Box of chocolate cake mix (2 layer size)

1/4 cup Water

1 cup White chocolate chips.

Beat egg and cooking oil in medium bowl until combined, Add cake mix, and water. Beat just until moistened. Add chocolate chips. Mix well. Drop, using 1 Tbsp for each, about 2 inches apart onto greased cookie sheets, Bake at 350 F for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are set. Let stand on cookie sheets for 5 minutes. Remove cookies from sheet and place on wire racks to cool. Makes about 48 cookies.

These are absolutely divine!!! I will definitely be making these for the next potluck i go to! I had to use colored chips as that was all i had, and i used a teaspoon to drop them instead of a tablespoon. Either way, i only got about 38 cookies. For the oil, i used canola, and the cake mix was chocolate fudge. I thought the batter looked a little greasy. I used parchment, but i really do not think it would have been necessary to grease the pans had i not.

So while the cookies are baking, i start on my Mac & Cheese. I had to shred the cheddar and Havarti, the others i had bought conveniently shredded. I had a difficult time shredding the Havarti, as it was so soft, but it melted properly in the end. Now for the 'professional pic'. (I love this bowl that it shows; it has cute little handles like a pot)

6 cups cooked elbow macaroni.

2 Tbsp Butter

4 cups evaporated milk

6 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

In large mixing bowl, toss macaroni with butter. Stir in evaporated milk, cheese, salt, and pepper. Place in 4 to 7 quart Crockpot. Cover, cook on High for 2 to 3 hours. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Since i used 3 white cheeses and only 1 yellow, my Mac & cheese turned out white. I also added part of an onion to add some extra flavor, and omitted most of the salt. I salted the pasta water and then just put a sprinkle into the Crockpot. Now, after having to cook 2 batches of pasta, i figured out 6 cups of cooked is about 3 + 1/2 to 3 +3/4 cups of uncooked. After it cooked about 2 hours, i gave it a good stir. It still had quite a bit if liquid, half an hour after stirring it, i stirred again and most if the liquid had absorbed. This was a HUGE recipe. I had company, so i served 2 plates for dinner and then we each were able to take 2 large servings for our lunches this week. I think it would easily serve 8 for dinner, and 12 or more for a side.

This Mac & cheese recipe was good, for a first try. I think next time i will try a different combo of cheese, or maybe just stick with Cheddar. I will definitely be making it again, though!