Does anyone else feel like fall = comfort food? I don’t know of a more widely popular comfort food than homemade macaroni and cheese. Pasta, cheese, and a house full of tantalizing smells as it cooks. Be forewarned though, with Bleu and sharp white Cheddar cheeses, this is a grownup-friendly mac and cheese (sorry kiddies!). My grown-up Bleu Cheese Mac will be sent to Natasha of 5 Star Foodie for her 5 Star Makeover: Macaroni and Cheese!
Bleu Cheese Mac
(Yield: about 8 servings)
¾ to 1 pound whole grain rotini pasta (or any small pasta shape you like)
4 TB plus 1 tsp olive oil, divided
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 medium-large zucchini, thinly sliced
2 ½ TB all-purpose flour
2 c low-fat milk
3 oz Gruyère, Emmental, or Swiss cheese, shredded
4 oz sharp white Cheddar, shredded
1 oz Bleu cheese, crumbled
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
¼ tsp dry mustard powder
Pinch salt and pepper
¼ c Italian-style dry breadcrumbs
1 TB minced fresh parsley
Butter (to grease the casserole dish)
Preheat the oven to 400F. Cook the pasta to al dente according to the package directions. Sauté the onion in 2 TB oil over medium-low heat for 12-15 minutes until it’s caramelized; turn the heat up to high, add the zucchini, and cook another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
For the topping, combine the breadcrumbs, parsley, and 1 tsp oil and set aside for now.
For the cheese sauce, cook 2 TB oil with 2 ½ TB flour until it starts to bubble. Gradually add the milk, bring the sauce up to a boil, then turn off the heat. Into the milk sauce, whisk the Gruyère, Cheddar, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, and salt and pepper. Combine the onion/zucchini mixture, pasta, and cheese sauce, then stir in the crumbled Bleu cheese. Pour into a buttered casserole dish, top with the breadcrumb mixture, and bake for about 15 minutes until it bubbles at the sides and is lightly browned on top. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before serving.
I’m Faith Gorsky, the writer, cook, and photographer behind An Edible Mosaic. My goal is to inspire you to get in the kitchen and try something new! Feel free to 
Heavenly Housewife says
September 14, 2009 at 10:16 amMac and cheese is awesome fall comfort food. I love your take on it, looks delicious!
Karyn Bernard (French Charming) says
September 14, 2009 at 10:35 amYippee, Mac & Cheese for grown ups! This sounds divine!! Your photos are gorgeous as usual. Hope your week is off to a fabulous start!
Hugs,
Karyn
Holly says
September 14, 2009 at 10:36 amcaramelized onions might be one of my favorite things of all-time! they look SOOOO good!
theUngourmet says
September 14, 2009 at 10:38 amIt’s so funny, I planned on Mac and Cheese this week too! I’ve seen 2 recipes over the last couple of days. It must be the time of year for it, huh!
I love your rich and yummy twist! :P
chriesi says
September 14, 2009 at 10:39 amMmm sounds very delicious! Great idea!
Blond Duck says
September 14, 2009 at 11:54 amI love mac and cheese in all forms.
Figtreeapps says
September 14, 2009 at 12:09 pmI just came home from work and Im starving…I wish someone would whip up a batch of this for me it looks soooooooooooooo good. Figtreeapps
Chiara says
September 14, 2009 at 2:25 pmAh, I love fall food. I can’t wait for the fall to get here so I can make some mac n cheese! I love the blue cheese idea… yum!
nora@ffr says
September 14, 2009 at 2:33 pmlove the idea!! this is great!!! loove mac and cheese soo soo much!1 hehe
Krista says
September 14, 2009 at 4:56 pmMmmm….first bleu cheese on fish…now in Mac! Yum! and I like how you snuck the veg in there.
Natasha - 5 Star Foodie says
September 14, 2009 at 6:42 pmI love the idea of mac & cheese with bleu cheese, fabulous!
Reeni says
September 14, 2009 at 7:29 pmThat is why I’m so happy that fall is fast approaching. Bring on the comfort foods! This looks wonderful – love the choice of cheeses!
SpinDiva says
September 15, 2009 at 2:10 amthis looks delicious… we love mac and cheese and yes, to me, fall=comfort food. YUM!
Dawn says
September 15, 2009 at 7:36 amI’m not a huge mac n cheese fan but this looks absolutely delicious!
oneshotbeyond says
September 15, 2009 at 9:20 amI am a fan of all things pasta, all things cheesy, all things with blue cheese! WOW. Saving-now. Thanks
Natalie says
September 16, 2009 at 10:40 amThis looks so amazing. I love mac and cheese, and I love blue cheese. I will def have to try this one! thanks for sharing.
natalie
Chaya says
September 20, 2009 at 5:32 pmThis looks to me to be an improvement on good ole mac and cheese. This is gourmet mac and cheese and these cheese are an improvement.
Sorry I could not get a yogurt recipe in. It has been our holy days and I have not on the Net for a few days. With a half hour to go, I don’t think I can pull it off. I was looking forward to this. My loss.
Sabrina Shales says
October 20, 2009 at 10:51 amIm studying Food technology and we have been making this but changing it to suit our 8 a day. I love this idea but isnt it changing to not be the classic macaroni and cheese?
admin says
October 20, 2009 at 12:02 pmSabrina Shales, You’re right, this isn’t a classic mac and cheese at all! The bleu cheese and zucchini provide a whole other taste experience. Hope you like it! :)
Michael [KyotoFoodie] says
November 2, 2009 at 7:27 amThis looks totally and overwhelmingly yummy!
Muneeba says
November 3, 2009 at 6:15 amOhmanohmanohmanohman … love adding blue cheese to pasta … and this version has everything I love! Gawd, I’m salivating at 8 in the morning!