Mac & Cheese

This started as Alton Brown's recipe, but got modified by my brother. You can scale this recipe up or down, just keep the ratios about the same, and it will be good.

Ingredients

• 3 quarts of water

• 1.5 TBSP of kosher salt (or equivalent amount of any other salt)

• 12 ounces uncooked macaroni

• 3 TBSP unsalted butter

• 3 TBSP all-purpose flour

• 1 TBSP mustard powder

• 1 tsp regular or smoked paprika

• 3 cups milk

• 1 egg

• 18 ounces by weight of shredded cheese

• Salt and pepper to taste

The Cheese

• You can use all cheddar, and it will be great, but the texture is better if you use a mixture of Cheddar with Monterey Jack or Gruyere (or all three). For best texture, use <50% cheddar.

• Don't use an aged cheddar. It splits too easily.

• Add the cheese to the béchamel off the heat. That helps prevent splitting.

• Consider using 100% non-cheddar for the top to dramatically decrease the chances of splitting.

Equipment

• Large pot for boiling pasta

• Large sauce pan

• Casserole dish or similar for baking

• Gravy whisk (recommended for making the béchamel)

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta  in 3 quarts of well-salted water for about 9-10 minutes. Drain but don't rinse. (In the words of Alton Brown: “the noodles should put up some resistance to the tooth but not so much that it gums up in your back teeth, 9 to 10 minutes.”)

2. While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large sauce pan over medium heat

3. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is pale blond, about 3 minutes. Whisk in the mustard and paprika, and cook until aromatic, about another minute.

4. Whisk in the milk

5. Stirring frequency, bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute (should thicken slightly)

6. Temper the beaten egg and add to sauce

7. Remove  sauce from the heat and fold in 75% of the shredded cheese

8. Add the pasta to the cheese sauce and mix well (but not violently); place in casserole

9. Top with remaining cheese

10. Bake at 350°F until cheese on top is nice and melty and looks good. You can let it brown a bit on th edges, but be careful not to split the cheddar.