Much Needed Comfort Food – Thick Mac and Cheese

Sick. By far the most heinous of four letter words. Give me your fornicates, your cruds, your hecks, your shrews; I shall not flinch. Just keep your diseases far, far away. In a locked box. Under the sea. On Mars. Like a beat up Ford pinto far past its prime, my body fails me through a non-stop runny nose, fatigue, a sore throat and that annoying stuffed-up head feeling. Bah! I hate being sick!

Mmmmm Butter

I did this delightful dance a few weeks ago, a condition I largely blame on the pressures of work, trudging through the needs and responsibilities, cutting whatever I can from my list of Things That Require Motion or Thought (which is quite a large list, by the way). When I’m like this everything is a candidate for the chopping block; even, dare I say it, cooking. Who wants to stand and pay attention to hot burny things when they’re sick? There aren’t any beds in the kitchen! Nonetheless, sustenance must be found and after waking from a post-work nap a few Fridays ago my hunger trumped my sickness, so I stumbled into the kitchen. This was a day for simple. This was a day for comfort food. This was a day for mac and cheese.

The Cheese Sauce

I was in no mood to go hunting for ingredients at the local mega mart (have I mentioned it is friggin’ cold here?) so this became a foraging venture, searching for left over ingredients from earlier recipes or ingredients that I had intended to use but for whatever reason did not (the realm of forgotten ingredients). This, my friends, was delicious. The perfect sick-day comfort food.

Thick And Hearty Mac and Cheese

Thick Mac and Cheese
12 oz fat pasta
4TB butter
1 onion; chopped
1 green pell pepper
1 garlic; minced
1 hablano pepper; minced
1 cup light cream
5 oz pepper jack
5 oz cheddar
1tsp chili powder
1tsp oregano
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1 cup frozen peas; thawed and drained
1 cup frozen corn kernels; thawed and drained
2-3 cups cooked kidney beans
1/2C chopped fresh cilantro; chopped

Boil your noodles in salted water. In a large pan, saute your onion and green pepper until the onions are translucent. Add your jalapeno and garlic, cooking for another minute. Drop your heat to medium-low and add the cream, cheese, herbs and spices; cooking until well combined. Once ready, add your pasta, vegetables, beans and cilantro. Toss to coat and cook for a few minutes until the vegetables and kidney beans are hot. Serve and enjoy.