It seems like there are endless recipe variations on macaroni and cheese; however my family is not a big fan of cheese sauce-based macaroni and cheese. It seems to dilute the cheese flavor. This simple but tasty recipe was given to me at a church supper in Terre Haute; it's old, definitely has German or Jewish (kugel?) roots. The secret is to use a good-quality EXTRA-SHARP Cheddar cheese.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 2 cups elbow macaroni
- 0.25 cups butter , Optional
- 2 large eggs
- 1 can evaporated milk , 12 fluid ounce
- 0.5 cans sweetened condensed milk , 14 ounce
- 1.5 pounds extra-sharp Cheddar cheese , shredded
- 1 pinch paprika , or to taste
- 0.25 cups butter , Optional
- 0.5 cups soft bread crumbs , Optional
Instructions
-
1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 2-quart casserole with butter.
-
2
Dissolve salt in a large pot of water. Bring to a boil and cook macaroni, stirring often, until pasta is tender but still slightly firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Rinse macaroni under cool water, drain, and transfer to a bowl. Stir 1/4 cup softened butter into macaroni and toss a few times to melt butter and coat macaroni.
-
3
Beat eggs in a bowl; whisk evaporated and condensed milks into eggs.
-
4
Spread a layer of macaroni into the bottom of the prepared casserole; sprinkle with a layer of Cheddar cheese. Continue layering macaroni and cheese, ending with a layer of cheese on top. Pour egg-milk mixture over the layers. Use a fork to gently dig into the layers, assuring that the egg-milk mixture flows into all the layers. Sprinkle with paprika.
-
5
Melt 1/4 cup butter in a small skillet over medium heat; cook bread crumbs in the hot butter, stirring constantly, until fragrant and golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle crumb topping over casserole.
-
6
Bake in the preheated oven until casserole is browned and bubbling, about 45 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
Per serving
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