I made this for my family last night for Family Day, a Canadian statutory holiday created solely for the purpose of having a long weekend in February.  We normally make another kind of baked macaroni, but I wanted to try a different recipe and this one went over well. I served with roasted broccoli with garlic which complimented the cheese well. Here’s to appreciating your family!

Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients

• 1 box elbow macaroni (I used Catelli Smart macaroni in attempt to make this less bad for us)
• 3 tablespoons butter
• ¼ cup flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon dry mustard
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Dash of paprika
• 2⅓ cups 1% milk
• 2¼ cups grated Gruyere cheese
• ¾ cup grated Swiss cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 325^oF.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta approximately 8 minutes until just soft, or follow directions on package . Drain and rinse.

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. While melting, combine flour, salt, mustard, pepper, and paprika in a small bowl. Once the butter is melted, add the mixture and stir until toasted, about 3 minutes. Gradually whisk in the milk and continue to cook, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Add the Gruyere and stir to melt. Add the pasta and combine well with the sauce.

Pour into a two-quart casserole and top with the Swiss cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, then broil until the top is golden brown, approx. 2 minutes.

Note: I made this on a statutory holiday, so everything was closed and I couldn’t buy Gruyere, the one ingredient I was missing. I replaced it with aged cheddar and it still tasted great. I also added a bit more dry mustard and paprika to bump up the flavour.

Source: Food Network Magazine