Be Still my Beating Heart (if I eat any more of this...seriously.)

The weather is getting too cold for these old bones.  When the temps dip below 85 degrees, you'll most likely find me in sweatshirts, jeans, and knee high socks.  No, I'm not joking, yes, I'm anemic, and yes, I take iron supplements.  Never fear, moms and worrywarts, I've got it covered.

As I write this, it's a sunny 65 outside, but I've got my space heater on MAX and I'm pretty sure that the tights I'm wearing under my sweatpants are melting to my legs.  While I don't really like the inevitable decline in outdoor temperatures, it does make me excited for a few things, the most noted of which includes all things COMFORT FOOD.  Stews, soups, crock pot meals, casseroles....I love them all.  This past weekend meant the experimentation of a new recipe on the BGE (Big Green Egg).  If you haven't read about my love for the BGE, go back and read up here.

Dave and I decided to make mac and cheese (aka Heart Attack On a Plate).  And oh, did it turn out glorious!!!  I researched a few BGE mac and cheese recipes online, but this one from The Pioneer Woman really stole my heart.  YUM.  I followed her directions, and substituted/added a few of my own things.  I didn't take pictures of everything I was doing because 1.  Food blogger I am not, 2.  I do not like to measure exactly, and 3. It is impossible to temper eggs with a roux while simultaneously taking pictures- I do not have 5 hands.   I just wanted to share with you the gloriousness that is the BGE and everything that comes out of its cavernous depths.  UH-MA-ZING.  For real.  No joke.  I wish I could give you a taste through the computer.  Did you ever go camping as a kid and remember how everything that your parents cooked over the campfire just tasted so darn good?  That excitement you felt over making hot dogs on a stick, or roasting marshmallows?  The BGE is that excitement for GROWN UPS.  I can't stop using capitals, I'm so in love.  Sigh.

Sorry, I got too excited to actually start making this, and was less excited about taking pictures of all of my ingredients.  That's all you get.

The original recipe called for a pound of pasta, but I knew better...Dave and I needed MORE.  I made about a pound and a half, and just adjusted my other ingredients accordingly.  We had enough for 2 dinners and one lunch this way.  

Whisk that roux!

Mixing.

The Pioneer Woman's recipe called for whole milk.  I bought a small container (1 cup size) of heavy cream, and combined it with the skim milk I keep in the fridge.  No need to go out and buy a bunch of whole milk just for this recipe.

I also added some ground mustard.  I saw it on another recipe and thought, Why not?

If you don't love cheese, we can't be friends.

After looking through a few recipes for mac and cheese, I decided to use a mixture of extra sharp cheddar, fontina, and a wedge of parmesan.  I didn't measure, I just shredded.  This looked like an acceptable amount, so I stopped shredding.

Ready to make love.  It's a match made in heaven.

Consummating the mac and cheese marriage. 

I forgot to take a picture, but I added some crumbled bacon into this feast.  That was a good decision.  A really good decision.  I also added some nutmeg, salt, and pepper to the cheese mixture.  Trust me- you want to add the nutmeg.

Don't forget to top it off!

 I left a handful of cheese out of the recipe and combined it with a palmful of panko bread crumbs to spread on top.   If you don't have panko bread crumbs in your cupboard, go out and buy some.  They have a much better texture than regular breadcrumbs, which can sometimes end up like flour if you get a cruddy brand.  You want crunch!!

Oh myyyy.  No picture exists of this amazingness "styled" on my plate.  It was in my belly too fast for that nonsense.

We cooked the mac and cheese in the BGE for a little over a half hour at a 350 temp.  Would this recipe still be amazing in the oven?  I'm sure it would.  Was it even more amazing in the BGE?  Yep!  The BGE gave the whole thing a wonderfully fire-roasted smokey flavor.  Unbelievable!  Dave and I agreed that this is a once a year recipe, though.  I'm sure our arteries are thanking us.

BGE...the best acronym you'll ever want to use.

"Let's BGE it."

If you've never used the term, you're sorely missing out.  Here's the BGE, in all of its green glory:

That's the Big Green Egg, for those of you who haven't figured it out yet.

While the Egg currently sits in its portable "nest" (I wish I could have been clever enough to make that up, but alas, the BGE company is full of marketing genius.), at some point, I WILL build it a permanent home that looks more like this:

Seriously.  This WILL happen.

Let me give credit where its due and let you know that this picture came from here: Egg Head Forum

Yep.  There are whole forums and websites dedicated to people's love of the BGE.  It's a force not to be reckoned with.  Once you get a BGE, your life is changed forever- you think I joke, but I do not.

When my husband and I became the proud parents of a BGE (and yes, it will be your baby), my bestest sisterfriend Jen was visiting for the weekend.  Unfortunately, we had NO CLUE what we were doing, and proceeded to overcook a steak, and burn the outside of a pizza crust while leaving the inside gooey.  Needless to say, Jen went home after the weekend a very hungry and ill-fed guest.  I think we made it up to her when she visited this year, by making chicken and pork chops grilled to perfection, but I can't be quite sure.  We may have scarred her for life.  

Lest you think the BGE is just a grill, let me educate you on its usefulness.  It is a smoker:

Low and slooooow, and those ribs just fall apart in your mouth.  Amazing.

It is also a pizza oven.  Forget going out to the latest "brick fired pizza kitchen".  You've got one at home.  This puppy heats upwards of 600 degrees and with its shape and ceramic dome creates....Pizza. To. Die. For.

Cook it hot hot hot! (with a side of garlic green beans..yum!)

Closeup once it's done cooking- I couldn't get that close and melt the camera!!

Last night's dinner consisted of this:

Baked potatoes, more green beans (we can't get enough of veggies on the BGE), and a chicken VERY embarrassed to have a beer up its butt)

The BGE can also be used as an oven to bake bread and pies, although we haven't attempted to conquer that yet.  While you may be giving me the "pshaw" thought, saying to yourself, My gas grill is fine, and it can do half of these things...., I do wish that I could give you a scratch and sniff/taste through the internet.  You'd become a believer in an instant.

In all fairness, the BGE is not for those who want to grill a hamburger from start to finish in 10 minutes flat.  It takes some time to heat up, and takes a few tries of figuring out what temperature and time length you consider to be perfection for your foods.  As the saying goes, though, All good things come to those who wait...

So.  I'll wait til next spring to begin my plans for the BGE to land in a permanent nest.  In the meantime, I'll enjoy all it has to offer up off its hot coals (charcoal wood....no Kingsford briquettes in this baby...blasphemy!!).  Stop on over for dinner- we're probably making something amazing.

**End note disclaimer...I would be remiss if I did not share that my husband does the BGE cooking.  I'm his prep chef, and he carries it through to the end.  He's pretty amazing at it, but we don't need this going to his head, hence the smallest lettering I could find.