Momma Said to Eat Your Broccoli

My dear pal Zoe bought me a fabulous book entitled Macaroni & Cheese by Marlena Spieler.  I love gifts, don't you?!  The book has the most creative m&c recipes with really nice photos.  I have been dying to create something special ever since receiving it.  If you are in the market for a book exclusively detailing mac and cheese, I highly recommend this one.

Because I was feeling the need to be healthy, I decided on Marlena Spieler's Macaroni and Cheese "Broccolissimo" as a side dish to the yummy meal Hubbs was preparing.

First, blanch the broccoli and set aside.

Broccoli: the healthy part

Next, melt butter (the more the merrier), sprinkle in some flour and add milk.  Season with salt, cayenne and nutmeg.  I love the idea of nutmeg in this recipe - it is so festive.  Add a bunch (this is the exact measurement) of cheese.  The recipe calls for Sprinz or Asiago or a combo of Appenzeller, Jack or Parmesan.  My suggestion: use whatever type you have.  I used Mexican cheese, some smokey Gruyere, Cheddar, Mozza, and Parm.

Are you wondering what the little white marshmallow looking chunks are? Chopped string cheese. Uber classy.

Stir in the pasta noodles to the melted cheese.  Spoon into a shallow baking dish. Top with the broccoli and a bunch (again, please remember to use this exact measurement) of extra cheese.

Bake just until the top is bubbling and hot.

Bubbling and Oh So Hot

Enjoy with some deliciously bbq'ed asparagus.  Try squeezing some lemon onto the asparagus and topping with some fancy salt. Oh so delicious.

Does life get any better than this? Seriously.

Would you like a bite?

Mobile eateries make a girl go wild!

Food trucks are all the craze in LA right now.  I have seen a kabob truck, ice cream truck, cup cake truck, sushi truck, Korean bbq truck, French fry truck; honestly, there is a truck for every food fetish these days. Including {drum roll please} mac and cheese. Yep, and not just mac and cheese but mac and cheese in the form of a grilled cheese sandwich.  Clearly this changes the entire dynamic.  For good reason, the Grilled Cheese Truck has earned itself quite a reputation around town.

Because New Years was just last week and I have not had enough time to forget about my new year’s resolutions, I decided to add sliced tomatoes to my Cheesy Mac and Rib which already consisted of macaroni and cheese with sharp cheddar, bbq pork, and caramelized onions.  Delicious AND healthy. 

If you look very closely, you can see the tomato slices

Anything with hot sauce is better

Look at those gorgeous delectable noodles!

In the powerful words of my lady love Brittany, “melted cheese and bread = the perfect marriage.  Today that marriage was conducted by the grilled cheese food truck.  Glorious.”

This sandwich was honestly divine.  It was so perfectly melted and gooey that I almost forgot about the hour long line I stood in just to order my chow and the 45 minutes I had to wait for the food to be prepared…

Oozing with cheese!

 

Because I am a pure glutinous, I didn’t stop at the Cheesy Mac and Rib + tomatoes (don’t forget the healthy part). I also indulged in a Plain and Simple Gruyere Melt with a parmesan crust.  I opted for the French bread instead of the wheat bread because after all, I already made the effort to eat my vegetables (yep, the tomatoes).

Dipped into a shot of tomato soup made each bite heavenly. Seriously, I could hear angels singing in the background.

 

Not done yet.

What would a meal of this grandeur be without tater tots? Dumb question. 

Not just plain tater tots, but tater tots dipped into a trilogy of sauces: bacon andouille (hmmmm bacon), nacho cheese (try mixing it with a tad of tapatio), and straight tapatio hot sauce.

And you thought my meal was over, didn’t you? Nope. Dessert is the most important part of any meal. My lunch concluded with a Dessert Melt - Roasted banana puree, Nutella and marshmallow.  

It was a party. In my mouth.

Verdict: Eating light is for sissies.