Boursin Mac and Cheese

I saw this recipe some time ago.  I've been wanting to make this since St. Patty's Day.  I've also been oddly intrigued by Boursin.

Making this was a peace of cake.  However, I think the next time I make this I'll add either more Boursin or more white cheddar due to the fact that I prefer my mac & cheeses more cheesy and/or creamy.  

It was still delicious.

Boursin Mac n’ Cheese recipe from Kitchen Of Friends

Recipe
serves 4


350g elbow macaroni
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1 tbsp olive oil
sea salt and ground black pepper
2 cups milk
1 package (80g) Boursin cheese with garlic and herbs
3/4 cup mature white cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup soft breadcrumbs

- Preheat oven to 200C.

- Spread breadcrumbs on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Bake for 5 mins, remove and set aside.

- Bechamel sauce. Melt butter in a saucepan, add flour and whisk it constantly over medium heat until it forms a paste. Gradually add milk and turn up the heat. Whisk constantly. When mixture boils, turn down the heat and simmer for 5 mins. Turn off heat and add Boursin, cheddar and parmesan.


- Cook pasta in boiling salted water according to packet instructions. Drain and mix with cheese mixture. Season and scoop pasta and cheese mixture into a baking dish or ramekins. Top with baked breadcrumbs.

- Bake for 5-10 mins until cheese is bubbly and breadcrumbs crispy. Serve with chopped chives if desired.

Croque Monsieur - Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwich

I've never been a fan of sandwiches.

Grilled sandwiches on the other hand I was more in favor for.

Then I came across the Croque Monsieur that was featured in the movie "It's Complicated"...Ok, it wasn't the feature.  But it had an appeal.  My curiosity for this sandwich grew.  So when the

Croque means to "crunch" and Monsieur meant "mister".  The first written record of this sandwich was in Parisian Cafe in 1910 (wikipedia).

I looked at a few sites and for the most part I had followed Simply Recipe's.

This is by far the most filling grilled sandwich I've ever had.  Will I make it again?  Heck yeah!

Croque Monsieur (from Elise Bauer)

INGREDIENTS

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• A pinch each of salt, freshly ground pepper, nutmeg, or more to taste
• 6 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups grated)  *You also have the option to use Swiss, or Fontina.*  
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (packed)
• 8 slices of French or Italian loaf bread *I had used sour dough loaf bread.*
• 12 ounces ham, sliced
• Dijon mustard

METHOD

1 Preheat oven to 400°F.

2 Make the béchamel sauce. Melt butter in a small saucepan on medium/low heat until it just starts to bubble. Add the flour and cook, stirring until smooth, about 2 minutes. Slowly add the milk, whisking continuously, cooking until thick. Remove from heat. Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in the Parmesan and 1/4 cup of the grated Gruyère. Set aside.

3 Lay out the bread slices on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven, a few minutes each side, until lightly toasted. For extra flavor you can spread some butter on the bread slices before you toast them if you want.

(Alternatively, you can assemble the sandwiches as follows in step four and grill them on a skillet, finishing them in the broiler with the bechamel sauce.)

4 Lightly brush half of the toasted slices with mustard. Add the ham slices and about 1 cup of the remaining Gruyère cheese. Top with the other toasted bread slices.

*I chose to grill the ham slices as separately from the toasted bread with Gruyere Cheese, Then placed the ham on top of the toasts slices with cheese* 

5 Spoon on the béchamel sauce to the tops of the sandwiches. Sprinkle with the remaining Gruyère cheese. Place on a broiling pan. Bake in the oven for 5 minutes, then turn on the broiler and broil for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, until the cheese topping is bubbly and lightly browned.

If you top this sandwich with a fried egg it becomes a Croque Madame.

Makes 4 sandwiches.

Affairs Of The Heart

Photo credit to http://alexrushmer.com/

Love and food go hand in hand, as in my experience, I 'show' my love through food.  Nevermind that I love food to begin with but I love to share it with the people I love.  But what do you do when you just hit that emotional wall that just stops you from doing what you love?  Or stopped you from what you once loved?

I remember a few weeks ago that the boyfriend and I were at an apple orchard and we were talking about cooking.  You see, his father left his mother when my boyfriend turned 18 and she turned into a bachelorette for the next 15 or so years.  

His mother used to cook a lot when he was growing up and he enjoyed her cooking, as every child tends to love their parent's cooking.  But when his father left her.....  She stopped cooking.  Or specifically speaking....According to the boyfriend...She stopped cooking well.  She lost her touch.  Even though she has a new boyfriend...Things just weren't what the were.

I know that I'm 28 and I have much to learn.  I have hit that wall before.  I couldn't cook the way that I wanted to, and I couldn't work out without breaking down.  What do you do when you put your heart and soul into...Say a relationship....And you lost your touch?

I know, that when I had hit that low (although not quite at the same level), it took me a lot of time to regain myself.  To build myself up again.  What was the first dish you cooked?  I know for me it was my macaroni and cheese.  

That was probably the dish for me because that was one of the very first dishes I had made.  No, I'm not talking from the box.  I'm not talking about using Velveeta either.  I use real cheese, and every version is never the same.  I had used Fannie Farmer 13th Edition Paperback by Marion Cunningham as a general guideline in making my macaroni and cheese.  

I hope to never lose my touch with cooking.  I hope to always have it with me through all of life's instances.