At first the girls were tentative, but as there was no other lunch apparently forthcoming, they each tried a nibble on one piece of cheese-covered elbow macaroni. Aldie, who can take 30 minutes to eat a slice of apple, wolfed hers down in 2 minutes flat and asked for seconds! The other girls devoured theirs as well.
How to Make Stovetop Mac and Cheese
I’m sure some of us who love macaroni and cheese have experimented with just dumping grated cheese and milk into some freshly made macaroni, right? If your experience is like mine, when you do that, it doesn’t really result in the best outcome. The cheese is either stringy, clumpy, or both. To prevent that from happening here are a few tips:
Toss the grated cheddar cheese with a little cornstarch. This will help prevent the cheese from getting too stringy.Make a roux base for your cheese sauce with butter and flour. Heat equal portions of butter and flour to make a roux, then slowly add milk, whisking as you go to prevent clumps. Stir the grated cheese into the sauce. This will ensure that your sauce is smooth and creamy, and will have good coverage over the macaroni.Add a little lemon juice. The acid in the lemon juice will help keep the cheese from getting too stringy.
Cook until al dente—cooked through, but still slightly firm. Drain the pasta. Slowly dribble in 1 1/4 cups milk, while whisking (to avoid clumping) until the sauce is smooth. Slowly add the grated cheese, whisking until smooth. Stir in the lemon juice. If the macaroni isn’t ready yet, lower the heat to a level just high enough to keep the sauce warm. Serve immediately.
