Southern Tater Ale Craft Beer Mac and Cheese
Mac and cheese gets the beer cheese treatment with a unique sweet potato ale and creamy cheeses for a baked macaroni and cheese that's still saucy and cheesy underneath a blanket of panko crumbs.
Ingredients
- 1 lb elbow pasta cooked and drained
- 8 oz. extra sharp cheese shredded
- 6 oz. asiago cheese shredded
- 8 oz. fontina cheese shredded
- 1 cup Benford Southern Tater Ale (drink the rest)
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp flour
- 2 cups milk
- 2 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp dry mustard
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 cups panko bread crumbs
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees, spray a 9×13 baking dish with non-stick spray. You can also use individual ramekins.
- Mix all cheese together in a large bowl, remove 2 cups and set aside for later.
- In a medium size sauce pan over medium heat, melt butter, then add flour, whisk until smooth, it will get bubbly, keep whisking until just starting to turn light brown. While still whisking add the cup of beer, keep whisking then add milk slowly.
- Add onion powder, nutmeg, dried mustard and cayenne, season with salt and black pepper.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add cheese one hand full at a time. Whisk in all the cheese until all had melted, add to cooked pasta and toss to coat.
- Pour half of the pasta mixture in the pan, top with 2 cups of the reserved cheese, then top with rest of pasta. Top with remaining cheese.
- In a small bowl add panko bread crumbs and the rest of the beer toss quickly together and sprinkle on top of the pasta all over.
- Bake 30 minutes uncovered or until panko crumbs are lightly browned and cheese is bubbly.