Thursday Food Blogging

This is what happens when you let a jazz* guy loose in the kitchen.

This morning, as the Lovely Wife (henceforth the LW) set off to do Mom maintenance, I asked what she would like for dinner. "I'd be happy with macaroni and cheese," she said, as she breezed out the door, referring to the stuff that comes in a blue and white box.

Why settle for merely "happy," I thought, if there is an opportunity to go all the way to DELIGHTED.

So, with a little (but not too much) help from the "JOY OF COOKING" I improvised this concoction.

Macaroni Che Cosa l'Inferno (Macaroni what the hell)

Start by rummaging in the kitchen for whatever chunks of this and/or that, which may happen to be lying around. On this particular Thursday, I came up with sections of onion, green pepper, celery, carrots, and a few pimiento stuffed jumbo green olives. All of these got chopped into rather small pieces.** The point is, though, this will probably work just as well with whatever you have on hand. (Within reason. Haggus, for example, is probably not a good choice.) ***

The non-olive veggie-bits were**** sauted in olive oil, with a generous sprinkling of paprika.**

Meanwhile, two cups of macaroni elbows were cooked al dente, per the package instructions.

While the pasta boiled, about 4 oz.** Velveeta cheese-like substance was cut into cubes. A small amount** of milk was poured into the veggies, and the Velveeta chunks were added. This was then slowly heated to melt the quasi-cheesey stuff.

The cooked pasta was drained and placed in a buttered 2 1/2 quart baking dish. The chopped olives were added, along with generous sprinklings of nutmeg (very important!) and Italian seasoning. About 6 oz. of grated cheddar cheese** was added and mixed in.

Then, the Velveeta blend was poured onto the pasta and, again, mixed in. The mixture was topped with grated parmesian cheese. It was then baked at 350 F for about** 35 minutes.

As anticipated, the LW was, in fact, delighted with the outcome. I was rather pleased, myself.

Happy ending.
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* Full disclosure: Classical, too - but that is not currently relevant.
** I once asked my grandmother how much of this and that she used in the Hungarian delights she used to make. She shrugged and said she just added things until it tasted right. I hereby pass along this excellent advice.
*** Or maybe it is. What do I know?
**** Typically, passive voice is eschewed. But this shall have been a recipe. Sort of.