Judith Jones’ Spaghetti and Cheese

Over the New Year break, I read Judith Jones’ memoir The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food. She writes with such passion and excitment about food, and it was fascinating to read about her experience with bringing some of the big names of food, like Julia Child and Claudia Roden, to the American table. Also, working for a major publisher, it was interesting to read of her relationship with Alfred Knopf and his wife, as well as her experience as an editor.

At the end of the book, Judith included recipes from her childhood, from her time in France, and a variety of recipes on how to creatively use leftovers and to cook for one. One of the recipes from her childhood is for “spaghetti and cheese,” basically macaroni and cheese but with spaghetti noodles. She updated it with a bechamel sauce that Julia Child taught her how to make. Recipe after the jump.

 Spaghetti and Cheese

6 ounces macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
12 ounces cheese
4 dashes or so of Worcestershire sauce
salt
pepper

Topping
crushed multi-grain crackers
grated Parmesan cheese

I adjusted this recipe slightly, doubling it so Cauli and I could have leftovers, adding a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce, changing the topping to use up left over crackers, and including goat cheese in with the shredded mix I had. The great thing about this recipe is how easy it was to make and the fact that it used up leftovers from Christmas – leftover milk, cheese, and crackers helped to make this a warm and homey meal on our first evening back from our Chicago trip. I have to stress that the addition of goat cheese added a wonderful tang to the macaroni and cheese and I will continue to add it in the future. I used a Cheddar and jack mix, but Swiss, Gruyere, a port-infused cheddar, or a variety of other cheeses would work as well.

Preheat the oven to 375. Put water on to boil and season with salt. Add the macaroni (or penne, spaghetti, fusili, etc.) to the boiling water.

As the pasta cooks, heat up a sauce pan and melt the butter. Once melted, add the flour and stir until incorporated, cooking for a few minutes. Take off the heat and once the bubbling stops, add the milk all at once, returning to the heat to cook and stir until thick. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and the Worcestershire sauce. Take off the heat and incorporate the cheese a bit at a time, letting it melt before adding the next amount.

Once the pasta is done, drain into a colander and put in a casserole dish (I used a 1 3/4 quart oval dish), and mix the bechemel sauce in. Crush the crackers over the top and grate some Parmesan cheese over that. Bake for 20 minutes.