Mmmm Mmmm Mac 'N Cheese

For me, fall is a time for casseroles, slow cooker cooking, and all around comfort food.  My absolute favourite of which would have to be my Mom's homemade mac 'n cheese. I absolutely despise Kraft Dinner (a flaw of mine which is almost a deal breaker for my hubby who would eat KD for breakfast), probably because it can't even come close to comparing to this:

I took  this pic before it was cooked because I was giving it away and wouldn't be seeing it in it's ooey, gooey, melty, cheesy glory.  (Isn't there a Taco Bell commercial about that?)

I've been asked for this recipe many times, so I thought I'd share it here on the blog.  Hope this is okay, Mom!  If you try it, tell me what you think!

1.  Cook 2 1/2 c of macaroni until done (al dente).  Strain in colander.

2.  In same pot, melt 1/4c of butter.  Whisk in 1/4 c of flour, 1/4 tsp of dry mustard, 1 tsp of salt, and pepper to taste.

3.  Add a few good splashes of Worcestershire sauce, more if you like a little more zip.

4.  Whisk in 3 c of milk.  Heat gently, stirring with a whisk frequently to prevent scorching until it comes to a gentle boil.  Then keep stirring until it thickens.  Turn heat down just to keep it barely bubbling. When it thickens, stir in 2 1/2 c of shredded sharp cheese until melted.  Optional:  Add a good dollop of Cheez Whiz for extra cheesiness.

5.  Take off of heat and dump noodles back into the pot to mix.  Pour into a greased casserole dish.

6.  In microwave, melt 2 tbsp of butter or margarine.  Toss 1/2 to 1 c of bread, cracker, or cornflake crumbs until coated (I've even used ruffles chips, but I like soda crackers best).  Sprinkle over macaroni.  Then sprinkle more shredded cheese on top.

7.  Bake in oven at 350 until you see it bubbling around the edges and the topping is browned.  

Pair it up with some homemade biscuits, a salad, and an ice cold glass of milk and you've got a meal made in heaven!

Kicking leaves leads to shoveling snow . . . winter's on it's way!

This morning began at 7am.  Nothing unusual about that.  The sun was just coming up and the baby was beginning to stir.  Then I heard it.  The rhythmic chhh-chhh . . . chhh-chhh . . . coming through the bedroom window.  What is that???  Could it be???  I jumped out of bed (okay that's an exaggeration, I'm too sleep deprived to 'jump', it was more like a slither) and ran (I mean, dragged) myself to the window.  It was the neighbour scraping the frost off their car.  Just a little frost.  Whew!  Jonah entered the room and headed to the window.  His morning ritual is to check out what's happening as far as the construction goes on the street, and to make sure the 'builders' aren't leaning on their shovels sipping their Timmies for too long.  He notices the sparkly landscape right away but was greatly disappointed when I explained to him that it wasn't exactly snow and that we still had some time before Santa would be dropping by.  But, it put him in the festive spirit anyway - he enjoyed his breakfast of waffles and syrup in front of his Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer DVD.

So, later in the day, we had the pleasure of having my grandmother from Hornepayne (bet you don't know where that is!) and my Auntie Lee-Anne from Jasper, along with my mom and dad, for supper. We discovered this really neat paved trail through the forest last week that criss-crosses back and forth over a twisty creek, so we decided to take the fam and the dogs for a hike.  The leaves are just about at their peak so it was just gorgeous.

These pics are from our hike a few days ago. Unfortunately I forgot the camera today and didn't get any pictures with the family.  I'm horrible for forgetting the dang camera!

Anyway, we arrived home to a supper of cabbage rolls, French bread, carrots, and pumpkin pie! Yum! What a festive day and it's not even Thanksgiving yet!  Can't wait until next weekend when we can enjoy the cottage for the last time before it's closed up for the winter.  Such a bittersweet time of year.