And the Parmesan gives it a nutty undertone. It gives the sauce a tangy zing like Stouffer’s Macaroni and Cheese, which I’m addicted to. In my opinion, extra sharp cheddar cheese is required.
In addition to the American cheese, which is largely contributes to the smooth melt, are two other cheeses – extra sharp cheddar cheese and Parmesan. The result is this ultra-smooth and Creamy Macaroni and Cheese. Off to work I went and I was beyond thrilled that I was able to make a non-curdled, non-dried cheese sauce! AND be able to replicate it! Since that recent recipe, I have modified the basic recipe some, tweaking here and there and including techniques that I’ve heard along the way. In all of my trials, I have never tried American cheese. Perhaps it was the answer to all of my macaroni and cheese problems. Aha! Those words – smoothly and evenly – caught my attention. Until now! I stumbled upon an article in the latest Martha Stewart Living magazine that made it all click! The article outlined a basic recipe for the cheese sauce, one of the ingredients being American cheese because it melts smoothly and evenly. And so began a reoccurring cycle of making, dissatisfied eating, and frustration. Nothing worked! With each batch, I was sent on a hiatus from homemade macaroni and cheese before I tried again. Over the years, I have made many many batches, but none as good as this batch right here! All the recipes I’ve tried in the past resulted in a dry and curdly looking batch, no matter what trick I tried. (Here's looking at you, American!) Still others need a bit of assistance from a recipe to remain stable.With some unexpected ingredients, you too can make deliciously tangy, ultra-smooth and Creamy Macaroni and Cheese.Ī recipe for Creamy Macaroni and Cheese has been a long time coming.
Others have emulsifiers added to them to ensure that they melt smoothly at low temperatures without breaking. Some cheeses, like feta or halloumi, have a protein structure so tight that no amount of heating will cause them to break or melt. Once the protein structure breaks down too much, individual micro-droplets of fat and water coalesce, breaking out of the protein matrix and causing the cheese to completely break. Depending on the type of cheese, this takes place at anywhere from around 120☏, for super-melty high-moisture process cheeses like Velveeta, all the way up to 180☏ and higher, for super-dry cheeses like well-aged Parmigiano-Reggiano. Continue to heat the cheese, and eventually enough of its protein bonds will break that it'll flow and spread like a liquid. Ever notice how a piece of cheese left out in the heat for too long forms tiny beads on its surface? Those are beads of milk fat. Other flavorful compounds present in cheese are mostly intentional by-products of bacteria and aging.Īs cheese is heated, the first part to go is the fat, which begins melting at around 90☏. Salt can have a profound effect on the texture-saltier cheeses have had more moisture drawn out of the curd before being pressed, so they tend to be drier and firmer. Salt and other flavorings make up the rest of the cheese.These micelles link together into long chains, forming a matrix that gives the cheese its structure. These proteins come together headfirst in bundles of several thousand, protecting their hydrophobic heads and exposing their hydrophillic tails to their watery surroundings. Individual milk proteins (the main ones are four similar molecules called caseins) resemble little tadpoles with hydrophobic (water-avoiding) heads, and hydrophillic (water-seeking) tails. Protein micelles are spherical bundles of milk proteins.Because of this, and because of their suspension, these tiny globules don't come into contact with each other to form larger globules: cheeses stay creamy or crumbly, instead of greasy. Milk fat in solid cheese is dispersed in the form of microscopic globules kept suspended in a tight matrix of protein micelles (more on those in a second).Famous hard cheeses, like Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino Romano, may contain as little as 30 percent water after several years of aging. The longer a cheese is aged, the more moisture it loses, and the harder it becomes. Young cheeses like jack, young cheddars, and mozzarella have a relatively high water content-up to 80 percent.