Homemade Macaroni and Cheese (with bacon!)

This. Was. Amazing.

The recipe looked a bit daunting, but honestly it wasn't that bad as long as you prepped and didn't try to do things half way through. Also, I'm insane about what ingredients I use. The recipe called for whole cream, but the store didn't have any so I had to settle for half and half. But I only use Tillamook sweet cream butter. Period, end of story. If you can't get it in your area, well I'll pray for you. I also generally only use Tillamook Cheese, preferably sharp cheddar.

As I said before, this recipe psyched me out a bit. Not to mention it's from the 1920's and they had a different view then on what was 'easy' cooking. But I made sure to have everything measured out and ready before I started, and it was actually a breeze.

The result was amazingly creamy, but not too rich. I added some ground mustard to the flour mix and a clove of minced garlic to the melted butter, but otherwise followed it to the tee. I added some bacon (because bacon makes everything better!) but forgot to add before throwing it in the oven, so I just plopped it on top, no harm no foul.

This macaroni is really really worth the extra effort, and it fills a 9x13 pan so it'll be good for either a large group, or I'd suggest cutting it down a bit. The Boy and I both ate a fair share, and I gave a large bowl to David and May also.

I'll throw the recipe up in the comments!

Potatoes O'Maggy

This recipe is great for those potatoes you just aren't quite sure about. When you can't tell for sure if they are still good, or whether they are officially supporting other life. This is a bit more involved then your regular fried potatoes, but they are worth it, and can even streach from dinner to breakfast.

I wash and peel the potatoes, then dice them into roughly 1/2 inch chunks. These don't have to be perfect, trust me. Place them in a mixing bowl lightly coat with oil and toss lightly with salt, pepper or any other spices you like. I usually use rosemary, or skip the salt and pepper altogether and use Johnny's Seasoning Salt. Dice 1/2 a large white onion, and peel 5-8 cloves of garlic, and add these to my potato mix. Also cut 4-6 slices of bacon into chucks, and cook then set aside.

I pour the whole shebang into a casserole pan (size depends on how many I'm feeding) cover with tin foil, and bake in the oven for about an hour at 350 (check and stir around every 15 mins or so) in the last fifteen minutes, add in the bacon and leave off the foil to get some color on the tots. This goes great with a steak or pork chops. It can basically substitute for any other potato-ish side with dinner.

I almost always have left overs from this (as I'm physically incapable of cooking for 1 or 2 people) so I will save the remnants and grab them out in the morning. Simply throw them in a sautee or cast iron pan over medium to medium high heat with a tablespoon or two of oil (if you're like me, and seem to pick out a lot of the bacon bits before you re-cook it, you might want to add more. Sausage also goes great in this). Once the potatoes have brown and have a nice crisp you have a couple options. You can serve them straight up with the usual breakfast subjects ala Potatoes O'Maggy, or you can make what I like to call a Leftover Scramble.

For a Leftover Scramble you need either a cast iron or over safe pan (trust me on this) and if you do use an oven safe pan, I highly recommend you use a fry pan or skillet. Otherwise you risk make a scrabble-mess, and having sad face because you don't have breakfast. Heat your oven to 350, and simply pour a plain scrambled egg mixture (I use 2 eggs per person. 3 if I know they are a big eater) directly over the potatoes in the hot pan. I also occasionally add green onions or cheese (or both) into the egg batter, and it makes it very very yummy and adds some texture and color. Allow to bake approx. 15-25 min depending on the amount of eggs you add. And please be sure it's throughly cooked before you remove it from the oven. Allow to cool for a few minutes and serve!