Autumn Mac and Cheese

Autumn Mac and Cheese
YUM
I was going to make
the Pumpkin and Black Bean Chili
I had it all ready to go
then I thought I should
re read the instructions
to discover it was for
the crock pot
and this was at 2 pm
I didn't want dinner at 10pm
so I changed my plan to
Autumn Mac and Cheese

Butternut squash
scallion
yellow squash
zucchini
gala apple
nutmeg
pasta

You'll notice
I didn't do the brussel sprouts
that are called for in the
original recipe
it's my belief
brussel sprouts
are a form of
silent torture
my parents inflicted
on my sisters and I
to get back at us
for all the time we
talked back or fought
or just to put us in our place
they always found our hiding places
the plants
behind the turtle tank

sorry for the rant
now back to the actual recipe
I choose to roast
all the veggies
they are so yummy that way

if you have never
worked with a butternut squash
they are tough to peel
but just use your potato peeler
and take your time

the seeds are in the
bottom 'bulb' part
cut that off
cut it in half
and scoop the seeds out
if you're ambitious
you can roast them
if you're like me
you'll toss them

while I was chopping
I had the pasta boiling
normally you boil for 8 min
to have it el dente
because this pasta will
be cooked twice
I boiled it for 6 minutes

now the roux
butter and flour
the classic roux
the purpose
to thicken your sauce
without a chance of lumps

be sure to cook
your roux well
this will ensure
that it does not
taste like flour
a roux is the base
to almost all
cheese or white sauces
don't let it scare you

next come the milk
and the cheese
be sure you don't
cook this to boiling
it will scorch the milk
and give it an odd taste

I added the
roasted vegetables
to the cooked pasta

then I added
the yummy looking
cheese sauce

I didn't have the
Panako crumbs
so I used
croutons
ground them up

I mixed it all up
topped it with
ground croutons
french fried onions
and some Parmesan cheese

baked it up
man this was
smelling so good

this dish
took a little bit
of work to put it
all together
but it was really
very good
the apple gave it
a nice sweet flavor
however
I found there was
not a lot of the cheese sauce
when all was said and done
give it a try

Tempt my tummy Tuesday