Old-Fashioned Macaroni & Cheese

From Sunday Dinners: Food, Family, and Faith From Our Favorite Pastors by Diane Cowen

(Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2013, $24.99)

This luscious dish isn’t necessarily a regular menu item for this health-conscious family, but when they’ve just got to have some old-fashioned comfort food, Kirbyjon Caldwell hits the kitchen to make this special recipe the way his mother made it.

• 8 ounces large elbow macaroni
• Olive oil
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
• 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
• 1 tsp. salt
• 16 oz. shredded mild Cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 3-quart baking dish.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the macaroni and a sprinkle of olive oil. Cook until al dente. Drain and set aside.
Melt the butter in a medium-size saucepan. Add the chives, evaporated milk, and salt, and stir well.
Place half of the macaroni in the prepared baking dish. Cover with half of the cheese. Layer with the remaining macaroni and top with the remaining cheese. Pour the milk mixture over the top.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until the milk mixture is absorbed. Turn on the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes to brown the top of the cheese. Serves 12

NAPA CELLARS 2012 CHARDONNAY

As most people know, Rombauer makes one of the most popular Chardonnays on the market. Napa Cellars may not be as big and mouth filling as Rombauer, but it’s like a “mini Rombauer” for one third of the price! The actual winery was even started by the Frank and Rombauer families.
Napa Cellars 2012 Chardonnay is very rich and toasty with great aromas of apple, tropical pineapple and lush pears. On the palate is ripe fruit and sweet oak with a nice mouth feel; you can almost taste crème brûlée in the glass. The wine’s fruit is hand-selected from vineyards in prime locations around Napa Valley; a portion of the juice is cold fermented in stainless steel tanks, and the remaining is barrel fermented and aged for six months before being put through malolactic fermentation.

With more than 16,000 cases made every year, this wine should be fairly easy to find. For a Napa appellation Chardonnay and at approximately $15 retail, it’s an incredible deal, and is big enough to stand up to this month’s Old-Fashioned Macaroni & Cheese.

—Richard Righton
Owner, 36 Handles and Relish Burger Bar

Wine bottle photo courtesy of Trinchero Family Estates.