Two From A Texan Friend

For the recipes for this August/September edition, I have asked my friend Patrick Boyd, a real native of Dallas, to offer two one of his delicious Texas recipes.

Patrick's Mac & Cheese

Parboil your large elbow macaroni first, drain, rinse with cool water, toss with a little olive oil,and set aside.

Start with a 2 pound block of Velveeta ( I find this way easier than doing a Bechamel Sauce),and melt in the top of a double boiler with a ½ stick of real butter, unsalted. As it begins to melt, begin adding other white cheeses, about 4 to 6 ounces each, chopped up.

I start with the soft cheeses first, like havarti, then some brie (usually more than 6ounces, and it's best frozen first before chopping!) , then maybe some good mozarella, then baby swiss, then a good white cheddar, then gruyere, then a touch of a bleu.

I do add a little whole milk along the way to thin it. Also, some nice dark beer is good. Season to taste.

After the cheese sauce is ready, toss it with the mac in a large bowl. If you have too much, just use for other sauces or some soup.

Then pour into a large casserole dish, sprayed with olive oil or Pam, top with pats of butter ( i use a whole stick), then pour a little whole milk over to just "coat". Top the dish with big, thick slices of Longhorn Colby Cheese. Bake at 300º F until golden bubbly. Remove and let sit, aproximately 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

White & Dark Chocolate Bread Pudding

I developed this recipe from several different dessert bread puddings I have tried through the years. It is different from most traditional ones in that it is not a soggy Bread Pudding.

The Recipe:

For 2 Cakes: (this can be halved)

Butter Two 9" springform pans. It's best to foil the bottom piece of the springform first; it allows easier removal of the cake

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Ingredients:

2-3 loaves stale French bread. (Substituting stale English muffins, raisin bread, potato bread, etc., in sufficient quantity, is fine) You can dry the bread slightly in the oven if you're in a rush, but stale bread from the fridge, after a couple of days, is best.

1 pound unsalted butter

4 cups. Sugar

20 whole eggs (at room temperature) crack each one into a bowl

2 quarts. heavy cream (not cold, but not room temperature)

4 Tbsp pure vanilla extract

1 Tbsp cinnamon and/or nutmeg (not each, but total)

½ cup Grand Marnier, good bourbon (makers mark,), good rum (Mt. Gay, Bacardi dark) or brandy: a must in any good bread pudding!!!

4 to 8 ounces. white and dark raisins

½ cup chopped nuts: Walnuts, macadamias, toasted hazelnuts, but not pecans; they are too dry

1/2 bag each white & dark chocolate chips

To make:

1. Break the bread up into bite size pieces and set aside in a large bowl
2. In a large mixer, cream butter & sugar. Add whole eggs, one at a time!
3. Add heavy cream, spices & liquor
4. Put a layer of the bread, raisins, chocolate chips, and nuts in each of the springforms; pour on liquid mixture (it may need to be stirred thru out this process) only enough to cover dry mixture.
5. Repeat, ending with the liquid ½ inch from top. You must have some liquid left over for sauce later. Keep the left over sauce in the refrigerator – very cold!
6. Take a piece of foil large enough to "tent" over each springform and do so. This is so as to not let the cakes burn while cooking. Set them on a baking sheet and place in the pre-heated oven. While they are just going into the oven you must place some water in the bottom of the sheets – just enough to come up the sides of the sheet pans. It will bake off. Bake approximately 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the cakes.
7. Remove from oven and let each cake, in the springform, cool on a wire rack. Remove from springform only after cooling
8. Slice and slightly reheat individually in the oven or serve at room temperature, with sauce (shake before serving) or ice cream. Remember, this sauce has raw eggs in it but they are partially "cooked" by the alcohol.