Jungle Cat Cooking: Adventures in Cuisine: Mac'in': Round 2- Falltastic Mac v. Oktoberfest Mac

The Story

Bacon and pretzel bun crumb topping, pre-baking.

Obviously, I cannot have experimentation macaroni death round matches without my dear partner, Tammy. So, while on a weekend trip up to NYC, I clearly had to devote my entire Sunday to macaroni and cheese.

This time, it was the same Pumpkin Mac I made last week with some minor variations, redubbed "Falltastic Mac" by the Tammiest, versus our "Oktoberfest Mac" (Beer and Brat Mac with Bacon-Pretzel Bun Bread Crumbs). Do not be surprised- we may both dwell on the East Coast, but we spend three years in the Heartland while attending law school in the Midwest. And duh, beer cheese is delicious!

I am still debating whether my obsession with macaroni and cheese has become troubling..... Read on for the results....

The Food

"Oktoberfest Mac:"Beer and Brat Mac with Bacon- Pretzel Bun Bread Crumbs

STEP ONE: The Sausage. Obviously, by sausage, I mean Bratwurst. Bring two to three bottles of beer plus about three cups of beef stock (just enough to cover the sausages when you put them in) to a boil. While the beer-stock is heating, thinly sliced two sweet onions, and drop them in the beer. Then add in the bratwurst (in casing). We used 4 large sausages. Cook for the time recommended (depending on if the brat is pre-cooked or not), then remove the sausages. Allow them to cool and then thinly slice them. DO NOT THROW OUT THE BEER OR ONIONS (yet).

Photo 1: Thinly sliced onions; Photo 2: Thinly sliced onions in beer and beef stock; Photo 3: Uncooked Brats with beer, stock, and onions; Photo 4: Cooked Brats with beer, stock, and onions.

Mmmm, sliced meat.

STEP TWO: The Vegetables. And by vegetables, I mean onions. Actually, the same onions from step one. DON'T THROW THEM OUT!!!!! They are delicious and have absorbed all of that beer and sausage flavor. Melt 2-3 tablespoons of better, and then scoop out and caramelize the onions. Heat them over medium-high heat, stirring every 2-3 minutes, and add a generous amount of salt and pepper. Cook until they are are sweet and brown and delicious (anywhere from 20-40 minutes).

Photo 1: Beer onions, pre-caramelizing. Photo 2: Caramelized onions.

STEP THREE: The Bechamel. Same old story (to start): Melt about 6 tablespoons of butter. I heated the butter until it started to brown, then slowly shook in about 1/4 cup of flour, one tablespoon at a time, making sure to stir and combine completely with a whisk between additions. You want to make sure the flour-butter mixture browns, and after the roux had cooked for a bit, ADD THE BEER. Tricked you there, huh? After you've incorporated the beer (almost all of a 12-ounce bottle (about 10 ounces, or a a little more than a cup), we used Yeungling Amber), begin adding in whole milk, in about 3/4-1 cup increments. The texture might be a little weird, but just mix until the flour, butter, beer and milk are thoroughly combined. I added in about 2.5 cups total of whole milk, making sure to combine completely and bring almost to a boil in between addition. Season to taste with salt, pepper, mustard powder and cayenne pepper (at least a teaspoon of each). While the pasta cooks, let the bechamel simmer (not boil) to thicken the sauce.

The bechamel, with cayenne and mustard powder.

STEP FOUR: The Pasta. While making the bechamel, boil water- enough water to cook the pasta in. When the water is boiling, add the pasta, and cook according to directions. Drain thoroughly before proceeding to step 5.

STEP FIVE: The Cheese (Sauce) and Putting it ALL together. Add the pasta pack to the pot. Add about 10-14 ounces of your favorite SHREDDED sharp cheddar (I prefer mine cheesier), and a couple of ounces of shredded fontina, and stir. Then turn off the heat under the bechamel pot and pour in the bechamel sauce over the pasta and cheese. Stir to thoroughly combine, and then add in the cooked sausage and the caramelized onions. Mix together.

STEP SIX: Topping it off. Pour the macaroni and cheese into a large baking pan. Mix about 4-6 ounces of freshly grated fontina with a few strips of cooked and crumbled bacon and about 1 and 1/2 cups of pretzel bun bread crumbs (we used fresh, homemade pretzel buns), and sprinkle over the macaroni.

Tammy's amazing homemade pretzel buns.

The Tammiest, hard at work on the topping.

STEP SEVEN: Bake. And Serve. Bake the casserole for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees. For a super crispy top, broil the top for the last 5 minutes of baking.

Our "tablescape."

"Falltastic Mac: Pumpkin Mac with Brussels Sprouts and Bread Crumb Topping"

This was very similar to the last time we made it, but with a couple of small variations:

1. We used more pumpkin in the bechamel (about a cup), as well as about a cup of mascarpone cheese, and added in some nutmeg in addition to the cayenne.