Recipe of the week: The ‘ultimate decadent’ mac ’n’ cheese

On the road to Haleakala, the massive volcano on the island of Maui, Hawaii, sits the Hali’imaile General Store restaurant. Here, surrounded by dense sugar cane and rolling pineapple fields, Beverly Gannon serves up dishes inspired not only by Asian and Pacific flavors but by memories of her childhood in Texas. In her new cookbook, Family-Style Meals at the Hali’imaile General Store (Ten Speed Press), Gannon writes that, “when the retro food trend happened a few years ago, macaroni and cheese was the first thing I thought of.” Incorporating truffles makes this an intense indulgence “to die for”—but for “the ultimate decadent” mac ’n’ cheese, she recommends throwing in a bit of lobster meat as well.

Recipe of the week

Truffle Macaroni and Cheese

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6 tbsp butter

1⁄4 cup sliced onion

1 tbsp coarsely chopped shallot

1 clove garlic, smashed

1⁄2 tsp whole black peppercorns

31⁄2 cups heavy cream

3 cups half-and-half

2 tbsp flour

11⁄2 cups grated sharp white cheddar cheese

1⁄2 cup grated fontina cheese

1⁄2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Salt

Freshly ground white pepper

11⁄2 pounds penne pasta

1 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

1 tbsp chopped fresh chives

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

3 tbsp truffle oil

21⁄2 cups cubed lobster meat, if desired

In saucepan over medium heat, melt 1 tbsp butter. Add onion, shallot, garlic; cook for 2 minutes or until onion wilts. Add peppercorns, heavy cream, half-and-half. Decrease heat to low; simmer 10 minutes. Remove cream mixture from heat; carefully strain mixture through fine strainer into bowl with pouring spout. Discard vegetables. In same saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 3 tbsp butter. Add flour, whisk into butter. Continue to stir, cooking mixture for 2 minutes or until flour changes color from white to beige. Slowly add cream mixture, whisking constantly. Continue to cook and stir until mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add cheddar, fontina, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses and stir, blending cheeses into sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease ovenproof casserole dish. In large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta about 8 to 10 minutes until al dente. While pasta is cooking, in sauté pan over medium-high heat, melt remaining 2 tbsp butter. Add panko and sauté until panko is golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove pan from heat; add parsley and chives and mix together. When pasta is cooked to just al dente, drain it and save 1⁄2 cup pasta water. Transfer pasta into large bowl; pour sauce over pasta. With wooden spoon, incorporate sauce into pasta, making sure sauce gets into tubes of pasta. If sauce is too thick, add a few tbsp pasta water to thin. (Add lobster at this point, if desired.)

Pour pasta into casserole dish. Top with panko mixture. Place casserole in oven 12 to 15 minutes, or until heated through. Remove from oven; with a knife, poke holes all over casserole from top to bottom. Drizzle truffle oil over top through holes. Let sit for 2 minutes and serve. Serves 8.