What’s for Dinner: Macaroni and Cheese with Leeks and Bacon

Guest post by Meredith Adolph

As a new mom spending my days at home with my seven-month-old baby, I have the luxury of taking my time to make dinner. Because my baby is generally of an easygoing nature (and not terribly mobile yet), she allows me this time, and because I am a domestic sort, I take a fair bit of pleasure in it.
I know that in a few short months, dinnertime will look pretty different. The rush-hour commute home, the daycare pick-up, the growling stomach. I can get fairly testy when I’m hungry, so the hour before dinner tends be fraught with crankiness. More so if we don’t have a plan.

So now, while time is on my side, I’m trying to think up a few easy, comforting dishes that I can make pretty quickly on a weeknight instead of picking up the phone for takeout.
Macaroni and cheese is about as comforting as comfort food can get, plus it can be made with stuff I usually keep around the house. I like to add bacon to mac-n-cheese, because, well, who wouldn’t?  And to balance out the decadence just a bit, I’ve added leeks to the mix for some savoury vegetable presence.

The whole thing is pretty easy to throw together: cook the bacon and pasta while you make the sauce, then toss it all together.
In this recipe you can skip the last step altogether if you like your mac-n-cheese straight off the stove. (And if you’re eager to get dinner on the table.) But if you can spare another fifteen to twenty minutes, tip the whole mess into a baking pan, top it with breadcrumbs and bake it still it’s crispy around the edges. You won’t be sorry.

Macaroni and Cheese with Leeks and Bacon

Serves 6
3 cups macaroni or other short pasta (pictured: kamut penne)
8-10 slices of bacon
3 tbsp. butter
2 leeks, cleaned thoroughly and sliced
3 tbsp. flour
2 ½ cups milk
1 ½ cups grated cheddar (or a combination of cheeses - I recently used gouda, parmesan and havarti.)
½ tsp. dry mustard
a pinch of curry powder
salt and pepper to taste
optional: ¼ cup breadcrumbs

1. Cook the bacon in a large skillet, drain on paper towels and chop coarsely.
2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil, and cook your pasta to the al dente stage. Drain immediately and set aside till the sauce is ready.
3. In a large skillet or saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Sauté the leeks until softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the leeks and mix well to incorporate. Cook the floured leeks a minute or two, then add the milk. Stir well to get rid of any lumps, and reduce the heat to low. Cook the sauce, stirring occasionally, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add the cheese, dry mustard, curry powder, salt and pepper and combine well.
4. Final assembly: Combine the pasta, sauce and bacon. You can either eat it right away, or:
5. Extra step: baking. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Pour the combined pasta, sauce and bacon into an eight-inch square baking pan. Top with breadcrumbs and bake 15-20 minutes until the top and edges are golden brown.

Meredith Adolph is a local mom and restaurant cook-turned-public relations consultant. She writes about food at lastmuffinstanding.wordpress.com