Black and Blue Mac and Cheese

Ingredients

• 1 lb. pasta (I used large shells)
• 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 3 Tbsp. flour
• 1/2 cup Guinness (or another dark stout beer)
• 2 cups milk (I used 2%)
• 2 cups shredded white cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese, divided
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Instructions

1. 1

   --- FOR THE MAC AND CHEESE: ---

2. 2

   Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

3. 3

   Cook pasta in very salty water until two minutes less than al dente. Drain pasta and set aside.

4. 4

   Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat (I use the same pot I just cooked the pasta in). Add flour and whisk to form a roux. Cook roux for about 1 minute until fragrant.

5. 5

   Slowly stream beer into roux, whisking constantly to work out any lumps of roux.

6. 6

   Whisk milk into sauce. Let cook until sauce has thickened and just barely reached a simmer, 7-10 minutes.

7. 7

   When sauce has thickened, remove from heat and stir in white cheddar cheese until cheese is completely melted.

8. 8

   Fold half of the blue cheese into the sauce and reserve the rest for topping the finished pasta.

9. 9

   Add cooked pasta to sauce and stir to coat. Spoon mac and cheese into a large baking dish and top with toasted breadcrumbs (instructions below).

10. 10

    --- FOR THE BREADCRUMBS: ---

11. 11

    Melt butter in a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat. Add breadcrumbs and stir to combine. Toast breadcrumbs, stirring occasionally, until they're lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Remove toasted breadcrumbs from heat and sprinkle evenly across the top of the macaroni and cheese.

12. 12

    --- TO ASSEMBLE: ---

13. 13

    Bake mac and cheese at 375 for 20-25 minutes until breadcrumbs have browned and edges of pasta have crisped up. Remove from oven and top with remaining blue cheese and chopped parsley. Serve immediately.