Macaroni and cheese

Southern Living, Jan 2002 by Florio, Donna

Serve up some comfort with this favorite dish.

I have rarely met a macaroni and cheese I didn't like. Whether the macaroni is bathed in cheesy sauce or layered with cheese, topped with eggs and milk, then baked (custard style), I indulge indiscriminately and happily. This dish's sturdy simplicity offers a happy reminder that no matter how rough the day has been, there is comfort to be found.

Nonetheless, there are rigorous standards for the perfect macaroni and cheese-just ask our Foods staff. The custard vs. creamy debate raged at the tasting table for days, with advocates on both sides advancing their causes. This food obviously runs deep in our blood (and on our waistlines).

Here are some of the other dividing lines: Bake it in a deep bowl or a shallow dish? Stir in a sleeve of crumbled saltines to help give it body or not? Cheddar cheese, Velveeta, or a combination of Cheddar and American? (We all concluded that good-quality sharp and extra-sharp Cheddar give the best results to both creamy and custardstyle versions.) Finally, we considered whether to put the cheese on top at the last minute or bake it the whole time to make it crusty.

The cook's style and skill, though, are the most important factors. Custard versions can be dry without enough cheese or milk-and-egg mixture, or if they're overbaked. Other cooks take a more-is-better approach, loading their recipes with extra cheese and butter, producing an oil slick of a sauce. We don't mention in polite company those folks who include such foreign ingredients as mushrooms, fresh herbs, or pimiento. (Well, okay. We might allow a little pimiento.)

In the end, your mac 'n' cheese preference bakes down to what you grew up with. All the discussion and research in the world won't change the fact that your mama's recipe is the best-at least in your eyes. With that in mind, we offer two stellar examples: one custard style, the other creamy. Go ahead and serve them to your mamawe think she'll be impressed.

DONNA FLORIO