Macaroni & Cheese

Growing up my mom made macaroni and cheese, homemade of course, with elbow macaroni.

When we moved into our stepmother’s house after my mom passed, my little sister Ruthie and I made Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

As I grew older and had children of my own, I’d make homemade macaroni and cheese and Kraft Macaroni and Cheese—as kids like that.

When I started to date current husband, we went to his folks on occasion. Maurine (mother-in-law) was ‘famous’ for her macaroni and cheese (and her potato salad). She used what she called “macaroni macaroni” noodles. Long macaroni noodles—like thick spaghetti hollowed. You could drink through the noodle like a straw. I never knew they made such a noodle—and it does make good macaroni and cheese. It’s what I use now… unless I don’t have any on hand and want to make mac and cheese, then I might use any kind of noodle.

My husband’s folks are no longer living, but when the rest of the family gets together, you can bet there’s usually Maurine’s version of mac and cheese.

Cook a package of Macaroni Noodles (I can only find these noodles at Schnucks—here in St. Louis, MO). Butter a casserole dish, add a layer of noodles, sprinkle with salt and pepper, top with hunks of cut up Colby cheese, dot with a little of butter and repeat. Top the noodles with some slices or shredded Colby cheese, dot with butter. Add milk—enough that when you tip the casserole dish you will see the milk starting to appear. Maurine always liked to use more milk, so give it an extra splash if you want. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for about a good hour, or longer, until golden brown and bubbly.

Some folks like the top of this to be crunchy, which I’m not a fan of, however even leaving the lid on makes a crunchy top. But you could take the lid off the last 10 minutes of cooking for any extra crunch.

Ingredients:
Macaroni Noodles
Milk
Colby cheese
butter, salt and pepper

Rating & Type: E/V

Popcorn Sunday and Renee

Renee (pronounced REE-NEE), an elderly neighbor that lived near me when I was a single parent renting my best friend’s house, who lucky for me was moving and getting remarried as I was moving and divorcing. Renee seemed like she could have been a Southern lady. She had a bit of a drawl to her voice—okay maybe she was from the hills. I’m not sure. She also reminded me of Gladys—or whatever character that was in some sitcom who was always peeking out her window to see what was going on—maybe that was Bewitched. I always felt safe with Renee around—sometimes a little too safe. But Renee was nothing but good to me and my children. A true sweetheart.

Renee told me that every Sunday she took a break from cooking dinner. She and her husband would eat popcorn, sliced apples and cheese. I always thought that was an interesting combination.

So Renee, this one’s for you!
Pop some popcorn.
Slice up an apple.
Pull out your favorite cheese.
You can’t get much easier than that!

Ingredients:
Popcorn
Apples
Cheese

Rating & Type: EE/V

Broccoli, Chicken & Rice Casserole

Wednesday’s casserole—Broccoli,Chicken & Rice—is something I served my children a lot when they were younger. I combined parts of several different versions because I usually didn’t have some of the ingredients on hand.

Cook up some rice. Probably a couple of cups. I like brown rice, but kids usually like white. Saute chicken pieces until cooked. Mix a can of cream of mushroom with the rice, add a bag of frozen broccoli or half of a bag if you think it’s too much. Stir in the chicken. Add a little milk. You can also add some shredded cheese if those you are serving like that. You could also top with some bread crumbs and a little melted butter drizzled over the top. Then bake about 30-45 minutes at 350. If someone is not a mushroom fan, you could always substitute with cream of chicken or some other creamed soup.

Ingredients:
Chicken
Rice
Broccoli
Cream of Mushroom soup (or other)
milk
cheese

Rating & Type: E/C

Grilled Cheese

A nice easy standby is grilled cheese. But try it with a new twist. My husband shared his version of grilled cheese with me and I’ve been a fan since. I grew up with the standard: white bread, butter on the outside with a slice of American cheese in the middle.

When I was a poor, single parent I decided to try the cheap brand of American cheese. I have no idea what brand it was—definitely not Kraft. The cheese wouldn’t even melt. I vowed right then that no matter how poor I was, I would buy Kraft American Cheese. I’m sure there are other brands that melt, but I just stuck with Kraft.

Another time, when my little sister and I moved in with our stepmother after our dad remarried, our stepsister Cheri offered to make us a grilled cheese one day for lunch. Ruth and I were excited and said yes!

Cheri’s version of grilled cheese started out the same with the white bread and American cheese, but she sprinkled it with sugar. What? Then she spread some mayonnaise on one side of the bread, some mustard on the other side of the bread. Then grilled it. When she served us, Ruth and I looked at each other like, oh boy can’t wait to bite into this. Not.

Cheri proceeded to dip her toasted cheese in ketchup. You could tell she just loved it.
“Don’t you want to dip it ketchup?”

Ruth and I wanted to gag and we shook our heads no.

I took a bite and the condiments oozed out of the sandwich on all four sides. I couldn’t tell if I was eating a grilled mustard sandwich, a grilled mayonnaise sandwich or a grilled sugary cheese. The combination of it all was too much for my little sister. She waited until Cheri left and trashed her sandwich. I however will eat just about anything and managed to get it down but thought better to say yes when she offered to make a grilled cheese again.

With that experiment I was a little leery when my husband told me his grilled cheese was with Cinnamon Raisin bread and cheddar cheese. It sounded disgusting, but he assured me it was really good. I like cinnamon raisin bread and I like cheddar cheese, but the combination didn’t seem like a good fit. But it was delicious. That’s how I make grilled cheese now, unless of course little kids are in the picture, then it’s back to regular white bread and American cheese.

Ingredients:
Cinnamon Raisin Bread (I use Pepperidge Farm)
Cheddar cheese (Hautley’s, Kraft or a decent brand – that melts ☺)

Rating & Type: EE /V