Wild Mushroom Mac N Cheese Recipes

MUSHROOM MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• For the topping: Mix the panko, Parmesan, salt and pepper together in a small bowl. Set aside.
• For the pasta: In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta for 10 minutes (it should still be firm as it will continue to cook in the sauce). Drain and set aside, reserving about 1 cup of the pasta-cooking water.
• While the pasta cooks, heat a 3 1/2-quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, mushrooms, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to brown. Remove the cooked mushrooms to a plate and drizzle with the truffle oil.
• Preheat the broiler to high.
• Reduce the heat to medium under the Dutch oven. Add the butter and flour and mix with a wooden spoon to form a paste. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, for another minute. Slowly whisk in the milk. Bring this mixture to a simmer, whisking occasionally to prevent sticking on the bottom. Simmer for 5 minutes. Whisk in the gruyere, fontina and Parmesan and stir until fully incorporated.
• Add the pasta, reserved pasta water, cooked mushroom mixture, 3/4 teaspoon salt and the pepper to the cheese sauce and fold everything together. Top with the breadcrumb mixture and drizzle with the olive oil and truffle oil. Broil until the breadcrumbs are golden brown and the sauce is bubbling, about 8 minutes.
• Allow the mac and cheese to sit for 10 minutes before serving. Serve hot.

TRUFFLED MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• Heat the butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large (12-inch) saute pan, add the mushrooms, and cook over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes, until they are tender. Add the sherry and continue to saute for a few more minutes, until the sherry is absorbed. Set aside.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Add the pasta and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until al dente. Drain well.
• Meanwhile, melt the truffle butter in a large (4-quart) saucepan and whisk in the flour. Cook for 2 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk. Slowly whisk in the hot milk and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the white sauce is thickened and creamy. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 1/2 tablespoons salt, the pepper, and nutmeg.
• Combine the pasta, sauce, and mushrooms in a large bowl and pour them into a 10 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish.
• Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse until they're minced. Add the bread crumbs and pulse to combine. Sprinkle the crumbs over the pasta and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly and the crumbs are golden brown. Serve hot.

CREAMY WILD MUSHROOM, TRUFFLE MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180ºC (350ºF).
• Begin by cleaning the mushrooms, remove the stem if using shiitakes. Cut mushrooms in half, smaller if they are especially large.
• In a frying pan over medium high heat melt 30 mL (2 tbsp) of butter, add mushrooms and season with a good pinch of salt. Stir often for 5 minutes or until soft and beginning to brown. Add wine and remove from heat.
• Cook macaroni in generously salted water, according to package instructions until al dente. Drain and toss with 15 mL (1 tbsp) truffle oil.
• While macaroni is cooking, in a saucepan over medium heat melt 30 mL
• (2 tbsp) of butter and add flour. When it begins to bubble cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Whisk in milk, bring to a gentle boil, add bay leaf.
• Reduce temperature to low and cook 5 minutes until thick, stirring often. Remove bay leaf. Add grated Cheddar Cheese and stir until melted and smooth.
• In a large bowl mix mushrooms, macaroni, Cheddar sauce and chives. Pour 1/2 into a 22 x 22 cm (9 x 9 in) baking dish. Layer with sliced Swiss Cheese, cover with remaining macaroni. In a small bowl, combine Parmesan Cheese and breadcrumbs, spread over mac and cheese, dot with remaining butter.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbling. Let cool 5 minutes then serve, drizzled with the remaining truffle oil and cracked black pepper.

MACARONI CHEESE WITH MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Fill a large sauté pan with boiling water. Tip in the macaroni and cook according to the pack instructions. (It may take slightly longer than suggested). Meanwhile, trim, wash and slice the leeks, quarter the mushrooms and roughly chop the tomatoes.
• Drain the pasta and keep warm. Heat the oil in the pan. Add the leeks and mushrooms and fry for 4-6 mins until the leeks are tender. Toss in the tomatoes at the last minute. Season with salt if you want to and black pepper. Stir in the macaroni and let it warm through, then crumble the cheese over.

WILD MUSHROOM MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• To make the Mushrooms: Soak porcini in boiling-hot water, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, wash leeks.
• Strain porcini through a paper towel lined sieve into a bowl, reserving liquid. Squeeze liquid from mushrooms into sieve, then rinse mushrooms well to remove any grit and chop.
• Cook leeks in butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 8-10 minutes. Increase heat to high, then add all the mushrooms, reserved soaking liquid, and wine and boil, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are softened, about 5 minutes.
• Strain through a clean sieve into a liquid measuring cup, pressing hard on and reserving mushrooms.
• Return liquid to skillet and boil it until it is reduced to 1/3 cup, about 5 minutes. Add cream and boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until thickened, about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and boil, stirring, 1 minute. Transfer to a 3-quart shallow baking dish.
• To make the macaroni: Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in the middle.
• Cook macaroni in pasta pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking, then drain again.
• Meanwhile, heat milk in a small heavy saucepan over medium-low heat until hot.
• Melt butter in a heavy medium pot over medium-low heat, then whisk in flour and cook, whisking, 3 minutes.
• Whisk in hot milk, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and boil over medium heat, whisking constantly, 2 minutes, then whisk in 3 cups cheese until melted.
• Remove from heat and stir in macaroni and 1 1/2 cups cheese. Spread over mushrooms.
• Sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake until golden, about 30 minutes.

WILD MUSHROOM MAC 'N' CHEESE

Steps:

• Tip the dried mushrooms into a heatproof bowl, pour over hot water from the kettle until just covered, then set aside to soak until cool. Meanwhile, heat about a third of the butter in a frying pan until sizzling and scatter in the chestnut mushrooms. Season and fry for 4-5 mins over a high heat until soft and cooked through. Set aside. When the dried mushrooms are cool, drain over a bowl to catch the soaking juices, pressing to squeeze out all the liquid, then roughly chop.
• Heat all but about ½ tsp of the remaining butter in a large saucepan over a high heat until sizzling, then add the rehydrated mushrooms and fry for 2-3 mins until well browned. Scatter over the flour and stir together to make a sandy paste. Cook for 2 mins, then gradually pour in the reserved mushroom soaking liquid, leaving any sediment in the bottom of the bowl. Simmer until thickened, then gradually stir or whisk in the milk until completely incorporated into a sauce. Add the mustard powder or mustard and season to taste with a grating of nutmeg and some salt and pepper. Leave the sauce to cook gently on a low-medium heat. Meanwhile, cook the macaroni in a saucepan of boiling water for 2 mins less than stated on the packet.
• When the macaroni is ready, drain well and tip back into the saucepan. Pour over the mushroom sauce, tip in the fried chestnut mushrooms, all the cheddar and half the parmesan, then vigorously stir everything together until fully combined. Use the last of the butter to butter a casserole dish, then scrape in the macaroni and mushroom mix. Scatter with the remaining parmesan and the breadcrumbs, if using. Will keep covered and chilled for up to two days or in the freezer for up to three months. Defrost fully in the fridge before baking.
• When you're ready to cook, heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6. Bake for 20-25 mins until golden and bubbling. Leave to stand for a few minutes, then bring to the table and serve straight from the dish.