Mac and Cheese with Fresh Thyme

This was my first ever attempt at homemade Mac and Cheese. I had a lot of left over fresh thyme from another recipe so I thought I should throw some of that in.

I found an Alton Brown recipe but I didn't like some of the ingredients he used so I changed it a bit. This is what I used for my Mac and Cheese:

• 1/2 lb macaroni pasta
• 3 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp onion powder
  
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 large egg
• 2 1/4 cups medium cheddar cheese, shredded (sharp would be even better)
• 1/4 cup parmesan
  
• 1 1/2 tsp fresh chopped thyme leaves
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• Cracked pepper
• 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
• 3 tbsp butter

In a large pot, boil your macaroni until al dente. In a separate large pan melt 3 tbsp of butter. Whisk in your flour, dry mustard and onion powder. Keep whisking for about 5 minutes to avoid clumping. Add your milk and paprika and simmer for 10 minutes stirring very often. Temper your egg. (I have never in my life tempered an egg so I had to look up how to do it! You crack an egg into a bowl and whisk thoroughly. Slowly add the milk mixture a tsp at a time to bring the temperature up before pouring the egg into the pan. You will just need to add a few tsp of the milk mixture. This will help avoid scrambling of the egg.) Turn off the heat stir in the egg and 3/4 of the cheese, thyme, salt and pepper. Fold in your macaroni. Pour into a 13x9 baking dish. Top with remaining cheddar cheese and the Parmesan cheese.

For the topping, melt 3 tbsp butter in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and toss you Panko breadcrumbs to coat. Sprinkle over top of pasta. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5 minutes before serving.

~Good Stuff!~

Click HERE for a printable version of this recipe.