Nancy and I are lucky to live in the great wine country of Temecula. Many of the local wineries and restaurants provide truly great wine-pairing meals. Going to these events continues to inspire me to make great recipes. A recent meal at Angelo’s Italian Restaurant in Wildomar provided some inspiration for my new Truffle Mac & Cheese recipe. They didn’t give me the recipe. But I think I have come up with a version that I am more than happy to make when the family’s desire for Mac & Cheese becomes loud and clear!

What Makes this Mac and Cheese so Special

When the word Truffle pops up concerning sauces and pasta, I immediately start to think about its use. “Truffle oil” is sometimes used when wanting to make a recipe utilizing some essence of truffles. Much of the product sold as truffle oil is actually fake and uses chemicals to mimic the aroma of truffles. Always check the ingredients of the product you are thinking of purchasing. Even the description of the “aroma” of truffles on the label is probably misleading. A chemical compound called 2,4-dithiapentane is many times used to copy the truffle aroma.

I actually found two truffle products that I really like.

The Sabatino Tartufi Seasoning Tartufi Zest and the Urbani Truffles are two outstanding products to try if you are looking to bring out some truffle essence.

It’s All About the Cheese

One of the major ingredients in making any Mac & Cheese dish is obviously the cheese. I think the cheeses that I use are what makes this recipe outstanding! My recipe might be considered an “adult version” of Mac & Cheese. Many families are used to using the boxed version because they had it as a kid and know that their kids will enjoy it also. Blue cheese is not your typical Mac & Cheese ingredient. We don’t have to use much to bring out some “adult” funky flavors that work well with the truffle aspect of the dish. We are adding Gruyere, Fontina, and Sharp English White Cheddar to complete the cheese aspect of the dish. Gorgonzola is the blue cheese we are using. The combination of these cheeses makes our Mac & Cheese special! Here is the warning in advance. Loosen up the belt because it is sometimes hard to stop eating!

To top off our dish we need some texture. How about a Panko topping to give us some crunch? I love the crunch and additional flavor that the panko topping brings to the dish. Watch out…if you let people serve themselves they just may take all the topping!. I hope you all enjoy this dish as much as I enjoyed putting it together.

Please leave your comments below on your thoughts about Mac & Cheese and as always, thanks for Spending Time in My Kitchen!

Truffle Mac & Cheese

Recipe by David Frank – Spending Time In My Kitchen

0.0 from 0 votes

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

hour

minutes

Ingredients

16 oz Elbow pasta
1/4 lb Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled (1 cup)
1/2 lb Sharp English white cheddar, shredded (2 cups)
1/2 lb Fontina cheese, shredded (2 cups)
1/2 lb Gruyere cheese, shredded (2 cups)
1 Can Urbani Truffle sauce
1 Tbl Truffle zest seasoning
Topping
3 Tbl Butter
1 Cup Panko bread crumbs
1 Tbl Parmigiano cheese
1 Tbl Dry Italian Seasoning
1 tsp Truffle zest
Bechamel sauce
3 Tbl A/P flour
3 Cups Whole milk
1/4 tsp Nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°
Shred cheeses and set aside. Separate some of the shredded cheese and set aside a small amount to add to make a final layer to the Mac and Cheese before the cook.
Cook pasta
Place a medium pot of water on the stove. Add a 1/4 cup of salt to the water and turn the heat to high. Once water is boiling add pasta and cook until it is almost al dente.
Drain pasta and place into a large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of butter; toss and coat pasta. Set aside.
Make the Bechamel and Cheese Sauce
Over medium heat melt 3 tablespoons of butter into a large saucepan. Add flour and whisk/mix until smooth and has formed a paste. (I like to use a wooden spatula to mix the bechamel.) Keep stirring for about two more minutes. Slowly add milk and continuously stir until all the milk has combined with the flour and you have a smooth sauce consistency.
Lower heat to medium-low.
Slowly add cheddar, fontina, and blue cheese to the pot. Whisk until smooth and well emulsified.
Grease 9″ x 13″ baking/casserole dish
Add pasta to the dish. Add cheese sauce to the dish. Mix cheese sauce and pasta well. Now add gruyere to the dish. Stir until well combined. Add a small layer of the shredded cheese that was set aside to layer on top.
Make the Topping
Melt butter and add to a small bowl. Add topping ingredients to the bowl. Mix well.
Making the Mac & Cheese
Sprinkle panko topping evenly in one layer over the pasta. Add the dish of mac and cheese to the preheated oven.
Cook mac & cheese for about 30 minutes until browned and bubbling. Make sure the topping does not burn.
Serve the Mac and Cheese
Let Mac and Cheese rest for 10 minutes. Scoop and serve.
Enjoy!