Comfort Foods

Mac & Cheese

Contributed by Naomi

Ingredients:

Salt

Vegetable Oil

1 pound elbow macaroni

1 quart milk

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1/2 cup all purpous flour

12 ounces Gruyere, grated (4 cups)

8 ounces extra sharp Cheddar, grated (2 cups)

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

4 small tomatoes

1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Drizzle oil into large pot of boiling salted water. Add macaroni and cook according to directions. Drain well.

Meanwhile heat milk in a saucepan, but do not boil.

Melt 6 tbsp of butter in a large opt and add flour. Cook over low heat for 2 mins, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add hot milk and cook for 1-2 mins until thickened and smooth.

Off the heat, add Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 tbsp salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add cooked macaroni and stir well.

Pour into baking dish.

Slice tomatoes and arrange on top. Melt remaining 2tbsp butter and combine with bread crumbs, sprinkle on top. Bake for 30-35 mins or until sauce is bubbly or macaroni is browned on top.




Kalbi (Korean BBQ short ribs)

Contributed by Anna

Ingredients:

10-12 beef short ribs (ribs that are cut cross-wise)

substitute ribs with Tofu for a vegan dish

2:1 ratio of water to soy sauce, enough for a marinade 

approx. 1/8 cup sesame oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 yellow onion, sliced

3-4 large green onions, sliced

small handful of sugar

Directions:

Mix well and marinade ribs in a large container.  Refrigerate overnight.  Grill, broil, or pan fry meat over medium heat until meat is cooked as desired.  Garnish with sesame seeds.  For a kick, add chopped hot peppers (such as a jalapeño) to the marinade.

Mama Ceddia's Calzone

Contributed by Laina

Roll out store bought (or homemade) pizza dough into a rectangle/oval shape, about 1/8th of an inch thick (enough so you could roll it up lengthwise like a jelly roll 2 or 3 times over). Layer Salami (my mom said to buy "cooked salami" but i don't really know the difference since it is all cooked, the deli counter seemed to know what i meant though, then layer ham, then layer frozen spinach (defrosted and drained well), then layer mozzarella cheese. Roll lengthwise like a jelly roll, tuck ends in and seal tightly. Poke a few holes in the top to let is breathe and then paint with egg wash to help it turn golden in the oven. Sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese and pepper on top and bake in oven at 350 for about 25 minutes (until golden brown). For the veggie one we just sauteed up onions, peppers, broccoli, zucchini and squash and stuffed the calzone with that (you can use any veggies you want but i would saute with a little garlic and olive oil instead of adding them raw.  Roll up and bake the same as the other one!