- 2 1/2 c milk
- (2 bay leaves)
- 1 lb macaroni or similar pasta
- 4 T butter
- 3 T flour
- 1 1/2 c grated cheddar or swiss cheese
- 1/2 c grated parmesan
- pepper
- 1/2 c bread crumbs
- Preheat oven to 400.
- Boil salted water.
- (If using bay leaves, heat gently with milk for 5 minutes and let stand.)
- Cook pasta almost done. Drain and put in large bowl.
- Melt 3 T of the butter in small pan, add the flour, cook till brown = 5 minutes.
- (Remove bay leaves and) add 1/4 c of the milk to flour mixture, whisking.
- When smooth, add a little more milk. Keep doing it till milk is all used and sauce is thick.
- Add cheese and stir.
- Pour sauce over pasta, add parmesan, salt, and pepper.
- Grease 9 x 13″ baking pan with remaining T butter and pour pasta into it.
- Top with bread crumbs.
- Bake till bubbling and brown = 15-20 minutes.
*Simpler version: Instead of making sauce, use extra 1 T butter to grease dish, then layer in half of pasta, sprinkle with half of flour, fleck with half of butter, cover with half of cheeses, pour half of milk, sprinkle with half of salt and pepper. Repeat. Bake 30 minutes.
After How to Cook Everything.
