Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Recipe: http://www.publicradio.org/columns/prairiehome/sundberg/2012/10/10.shtml

Boy oh boy oh boy! What a great day for this dish! It was chilly outside, and the Mr. and I cleared the front yard of the first layer of leaves after Hurricane Sandy stripped a good bit of them off the trees behind the house. We came in and I put this together with an extra set of hands from him, which was necessary, because it all came together pretty fast.

My experience in the past with baked macaroni dishes end up with them being too dry, and not a creamy delicious mix of melted cheese. Not the case here, with a generous 4 cups of cheese, along with 3 cups of milk. It was everything a baked mac and cheese dish should be. The garlic was in the background, but there, and the bread crumb, parmesan topping was great. The shreds of parmesan browned but didn't disappear, and they added a nice texture of their own to the topping. Sort of like the crispy edges around a grilled cheese sandwich that gives a sort of smoky flavor. It was that good.

We had it with the rest of yesterday's meatloaf, to which I had added about a cup of dried, seasoned kale chips in the middle, before folding the mixture over, and placing in the pan to bake. It was so good, there was nearly no conversation at the table while we rested our weary muscles, and enjoyed a wonderful meal.

A large portion went next door to Julia's house, and she is always happy to help taste test for me. With two working parents and a 9 year old, she gets to add to the dinner table with what we share, and I like that.

My plate:

Thank you, Mrs. Sundberg.  :-)

Peanut Butter Pebbles

Recipe: http://www.publicradio.org/columns/prairiehome/sundberg/2012/10/17.shtml

Wow. Where did the time go??? Family needs, husband away on missile work that added to my days, priming and painting walls and ceilings, along with Hurricane Sandy. She left me without power for 17 hours, and some serious cleanup in the basement and 3 weeks is gone before I know it. This recipe is out of order, but I promised the Mr. that he would get the mac and cheese when he came home from somewhere across the International Date Line, and my hurricane husband made landfall at Washington-Dulles International Airport three days ago, so the mac and cheese recipe will happen in the next few days, along with the pork chop recipe. Whew!

This recipe was made the weekend before Sandy showed up. I was able to share it around the neighborhood with several people, and it got rave reviews.

It was really a crazy recipe! I have never made anything like this, with the confectioner's sugar, and the big plastic bag to shake it up, but that big bag is key to incorporate the sugar and break the cereal pieces apart. I was impressed with how it went from the chocolatey, sticky bowl full, to a bag full of individual pieces that were coated with the sugar, and were not messy at all! I had a few clumps of ones that I didn't get broken apart, but they were fine, and delicious. Any time chocolate and peanut butter are mixed together is okay by me.

I would imagine that the Supremes would have loved this, but the other two were at sea on another mission, different from my Mr.'s, so the kids around the neighborhood got to enjoy this treat. I just bagged it up in zip bags, and handed it out. Oh, and it was gone in a day!

Thank you, Mrs. Sundberg. :-)