This recipe is for bacon macaroni and cheese that serves 4-6 people. It involves sautéing onions and thyme in butter, then making a cream sauce by whisking in heavy cream and milk. The sauce is seasoned with cheddar, gruyere, dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Cooked elbow macaroni is tossed with the cream sauce and chopped bacon. The mixture is baked with a topping of panko breadcrumbs mixed with bacon grease.

1. Bacon Macaroni & Cheese
Makes aprox. 4-6 servings
1 Onion, finely diced
1 Tbsp Thyme, chopped
½ cup Butter
⅓ cup flour
2 cups Heavy Cream
2 cups Whole Milk
½ cup Aged White Cheddar Cheese
½ cup Gruyere, grated
1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
Salt & Pepper, to taste
½ lb Black Forest Bacon, chopped & cooked (reserve bacon grease)
1 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
1 lb Elbow Macaroni, ¾ cooked
1.At medium-high heat, Heat your butter in a medium sauce pan until it simmers.Add
your onions and sweat for two minutes.
2.Add your thyme and flour and stir until throughly mixed.
3.Stirring with a whisk, add in your cream and milk. Continue to stir with the whisk
for eight to ten minutes (cream mixture should come simmer then cook for at least
four-five minutes after reaching a simmer to cook out all the starch)
4.Turn off the heat on the pan and stir in both cheeses.
5.Taste tour mixture, then adjust seasoning with salt and pepper
6.In a large bowl toss together macaroni, bacon and cream sauce, then pour mixture
into a nine-by-thirteen inch pan
7.In a small bow mix together panko, salt, pepper and two tablespoons of bacon
grease (use more grease if a crisper top is desired)
8.Sprinkle breadcrumbs over top of the macaroni in the baking dish and bake for ten
-fifteen minutes (or until golden brown)
Recipe by Robert Chaisson