by Ellen Harcourt
Serves: 8-10 people. Preparation time: 60 minutes.
- 2 C. Small Elbow Mararoni
- 12 oz. Can Evaporated Milk
- ⅓ C. Sour Cream
- 2 Eggs
- ¼ t. Cayenne Pepper
- 4 T. Half and Half*
- ½ lb. Velveeta® Cheese (Cubed)
- ⅔ lb. Sharp Cheddar Cheese (Shredded)
- ⅓ lb. Colby Jack Cheese (Shredded)
- Butter
- Salt & Pepper
• Pre-heat the oven to 375°F. In 6 cups of water, add 1 t. Salt and cook the Macaroni until "al dente". When done, drain in a strainer and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
• Grease a 3 quart casserole dish with 1 T. Butter. In a mixing bowl, combine the Evaporated Milk, Sour Cream, Eggs, Cayenne Pepper, 1½ t. Salt and ½ t. Ground Pepper by whisking them well.
• Pour the cooked Macaroni into the casserole dish and spread it out evenly. Pour the liquid mixture from the bowl over the Macaroni. Use about 3 T. of Butter to make a dozen small dollops and add them to the surface of the casserole. Reserve half the Cheddar. Distribute the remaining half of the Shredded Cheddar and all the Shredded Colby Jack and all the Cubed Velveeta® Cheeses over the casserole. Now mix it up well while adding the Half and Half. When thoroughly mixed, flatten the surface by packing it down. Now distribute the remaining Shredded Cheddar evenly over the surface of the casserole as a topping.
• Bake the casserole for 20-25 minutes at 375° until the Cheddar Cheese topping is melted. Turn on the broiler to lightly brown the top, or continue baking the dish a few more minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 15 minutes before serving.
• Makes 8-10 servings.
”Velveeta®” - A brand of American Cheese owned by Kraft-Heinz (since 1927) that was developed in 1918 by Emil Frey in Monroe, NY. (near Peekskill and Newburgh, NY.) It was intended to salvage the broken cheese pieces of other types of cheese being made by the company. It was named to imply a "velvety smooth product". In the 1980s, Kraft used the jingle "Colby, Swiss and Cheddar, blended all together". It's best known in the US for the main ingredient in Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.
