a creamy, decadent baked mac and cheese with prosciutto, breadcrumbs, and herbs
servings: 4-6
Author:Kayla Howey
Ingredients
Scale
Sage Breadcrumbs
3 oz sourdough bread, cubed
6 sage leaves
Mac & Cheese
olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
2 cups whole milk
2 sprigs fresh sage
2 sprigs fresh thyme
4 oz sharp white cheddar, shredded
2 oz fontina, shredded (for the sauce)
4 oz thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into ½” pieces
1 lb campanelle pasta
2 oz fontina, shredded (for the topping)
olive oil, as needed
Instructions
Sage Breadcrumbs
Combine the bread and sage leaves in a food processor.
Pulse until the bread mixture resembles fine crumbs. Set aside.
Mac & Cheese
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, heat a heavy-bottom pot over medium heat. Add enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Add the onions and a pinch of salt. Saute the onions until golden and caramelized, about 10 minutes.
Add the butter to the onions and let melt. Whisk in the flour. Let cook for about 3 minutes. Slowly add the milk, whisking continuously. Add the sage and thyme. Bring the milk to a simmer. Let simmer for about 8-10 minutes on medium-low until slightly thickened, stirring often.
Remove and discard the sage and thyme sprigs. Stir in the cheddar cheese, 2oz of fontina cheese, and the prosciutto.
Meanwhile, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook 2 minutes less than the package instructions. Drain the pasta. Add the pasta to the sauce and stir until completely coated. Taste and season with salt as needed.
Distribute the mac & cheese into a large, greased cast-iron skillet or baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining fontina cheese over top. Top with the breadcrumbs as well. Drizzle the breadcrumbs with a little bit of olive oil.
Bake the mac & cheese for about 10 minutes until the cheese has melted and breadcrumbs have browned. Garnish with fresh thyme.
Notes
You can also roast off some acorn squashes until tender, with the seeds scooped out, and then mound the mac and cheese into the squash before baking!