burnt broccoli mac and cheese

my current favorite iteration of my very best mac and cheese recipe

macaroni and cheese has to be one of my favorite, if not my absolute favorite, comfort foods. i love it in pretty much all its forms, from the boxes of blue kraft that i grew up with to baked versions that slice into distinct, custardy squares to ones so saucy they need to be scooped.

a few weeks ago, as i was taking stock of the over 120 recipes (!) i’ve published so far in this newsletter, i found a glaring macaroni-and-cheese-shaped hole that needed to filled right away. luckily for me, over the years that i’ve been working professionally in recipe development, there’s been one recipe that i’ve been most proud of developing, and have kept in my own back pocket, revisiting time and time again whenever i want something simple but ultimately nostalgic and cozy: my one pot, 5-ingredient macaroni and cheese. so that’s where i started.

from there, it was pretty easy and straightforward to find the inspiration for a mac and cheese recipe worthy of publication here. i had recently developed a recipe for burnt broccoli for simply recipes using an easy and quick technique to give a grill-kissed flavor and beautiful, dark finish to florets of broccoli. so, i decided to pair these two recipes, keeping things simple and playing on the well known and loved combo of broccoli and cheese, but adding more nuance to the pot with a heap of burnt broccoli, lots of black pepper and plenty of fresh lemon zest.

this mac and cheese starts by making a roux (a sauce-thickening combo of cooked butter and flour) in a pot before adding milk and water. the pasta is then is then boiled directly in the sauce and the cheese is melted in off the heat, once the pasta is al dente. i’ve adapted the recipe below from my original by making slightly more roux, cooking it a bit longer, and using less liquid overall for a thicker, more velvety finish. i think it’s perfect, and i hope you do, too.

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this time two years ago:

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burnt broccoli mac and cheese

serves 2

for the burnt broccoli; recipe originally developed for Simply Recipes

1/2 head broccoli (about 150 - 180 grams)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

for the mac and cheese

150 grams white or yellow block cheddar cheese (don’t use pre-shredded)

2 tablespoons salted butter

1 1/2 tablespoons all purpose flour

200 milliliters whole milk

500 milliliters water

250 grams mezzi rigatoni or other medium pasta shape with a 12-14 minute cook time

1/2 lemon

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. preheat the broiler and move an oven rack to the top third of the oven, aiming for about 15 cm/6 inches between the rack and the top heating element. cut 1/2 head of broccoli (about 150 - 180 grams) into even-sized florets and add to a large rimmed baking sheet. season with 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 teaspoon salt, then toss to coat before spreading the florets on a baking sheet, making sure there’s at least 1 inch between every floret; this is the key to “burning” the broccoli" without it getting overcooked and mushy.

2. once the broiler is preheated, broil the broccoli until the florets are deeply browned and blackened in places and the stems are just fork-tender, 8 to 12 minutes; the exact timing will depend on your oven and the size of your florets. in the meantime, shred 150 grams block cheddar cheese using a food processor or box grater. remove broccoli from the oven and set aside.

3. in a saucepan (mine is 18 cm/7 inches in diameter) over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons salted butter. stir in 1 1/2 tablespoons flour and cook, stirring continuously, until the mixture has thickened and turned golden, about 4 - 5 minutes. add 200 milliliters of whole milk and continue to stir. once that has thickened, add 500 milliliters water and bring to a simmer over high heat. as soon as the liquid starts to simmer, add 250 grams pasta and a good pinch of salt. reduce heat to medium and cook for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is al dente, stirring often. if there seems to be not enough liquid to cover the pasta, you can always add another splash of water or simply stir more often to ensure the pasta cooks evenly.

4. while the pasta is cooking, finely chop the burnt broccoli. once the pasta is al dente, turn off the heat and mix in the grated cheddar cheese until completely melted. stir in the broccoli and fresh lemon zest from 1/2 a lemon. season to taste with salt and pepper. serve immediately, topped with extra black pepper if you know what’s good.

   leftovers, of which i rarely have any tbh, will keep for 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge. when i do have them, i personally like to save them in a small baking dish. when ready to reheat, i top with breadcrumbs and a few pieces of butter, cover, and bake at 180°C/350°F until hot all the way through, finishing the crumbs under the broiler to get crisp before serving.

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more from darn good:

coconut and grapefruit poppy seed cake with a sparkly sugar crust

pumpkin risotto with shortcut fried sage salsa macha

black bean² chili

→ browse my full recipe archive here ←