Stored food Night - Macaroni & Cheese (with canned cheese)

Fresh Macaroni & Cheese IS a stored foods meal, if you have a supply of canned cheese.  I have been experimenting with canning cheese for a while now, and have been putting it through its paces so that I know what to expect when I open a jar.  I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality and the versatility of home canned cheese.  Although different in consistency from fresh cheese, it performs quite admirably in a variety of dishes.  It slices quite nicely for eating or putting on crackers, grates easily for salad and even re-melts for sauces.

Freshly opened jar of cheese.  Notice the
layer of oil that has solidified
on the top of the cheese

I slide a butter knife around the outer
edge of the jar to loosen the cheese
and it slides right out

Cheese out of the jar.  Notice the "oil"
that I scraped off the top of the cheese

The cheese slices wonderfully

A pint of grated canned cheese

This evening, we made the ever humble Macaroni & Cheese.  Although a simple meal, it is a family favorite.  We started by boiling about 1 1/2 pounds of macaroni.  While the macaroni was boiling, I made a simple white sauce.  I melted butter in a saucepan (however, in a survival situation, shortening, lard, olive oil or most any other fat would do quite nicely) over low heat.  After the butter was melted, I added an equal amount of flour and stirred (of the heat) until the butter and flour formed a smooth paste.  I then added a pinch of dry mustard and our "secrete ingredient", which is garlic powder.  After mixing in the spices, and adding salt and pepper, I put the butter, flour, spice mixture back on low heat, stirring and cooking as the mixture thickens.  After becoming slightly thick, I added milk.  You could easily substitute powdered milk, canned milk, broth or even water.  Stir to combine and continue stirring.  At this point, I put the saucepan on medium (closer to the firebox) to increase the heat.  Continue to stir as the white sauce thickens.  After it becomes sufficiently thick (about the consistency of thin yogurt), move the saucepan to low (or turn down the heat).

White Sauce Recipe

2 T. Butter (margarine, lard, oil etc.)
2 T. flour
1/4 tsp. Dry Mustard Powder
1/4 tsp. Salt
Pepper to taste
1 C. Milk (canned milk, powdered milk, stock, water)

Adding flour to the melted butter

The beginnings of a white sauce

Having added the milk, the sauce is
beginning to thicken

Nicely thickened - ready for cheese

While preparing the white sauce, I had Miss Calamity grate a pint jar of canned cheese.  I added about 2/3 of the cheese to the white sauce and stirred over low heat until the cheese melted into the white sauce.  Something to note:  The consistency of the white sauce with the melted cheese made from canned cheese is slightly different than the consistency of white sauce made with fresh cheese.  The canned cheese separates slightly and is not as creamy.  However, when I added the cheese sauce to the macaroni - it went together perfectly, nothing odd at all!  

Adding cheese to the white sauce

After the macaroni had boiled to al dente, I poured it through a colander to drain the water, put the macaroni in a baking pan and poured the cheese sauce over the macaroni.  I stirred the cheese sauce and pasta together.  It produced a wonderful, creamy Macaroni & Cheese.  After stirring the sauce into the pasta, I sprinkled the remaining cheese over the top of the macaroni and popped the pan, uncovered, into the wood cookstove.  The oven was at a medium temperature (I could hold my hand in the oven for about 30 seconds).  The Mac & Cheese was nicely browned and crunchy on top in about 30 minutes!

The cheese sauce on the pasta - note that
there is a slight separation in the sauce

It stirred up wonderfully

With the remaining cheese sprinkled on top

 While the Macaroni & Cheese was baking on the top rack, we put French Bread on the bottom back.  Two loaves, we put in tin foil, which makes a softer crust.  One loaf, we put in a paper bag, which produces a nice crusty crust (Sir Knight calls them razor crust - you can guess which one he prefers!).

Miss Calamity buttering
garlic bread

Macaroni & Cheese made with home canned cheese was a hit.  It tastes every bit as good as the same recipe made entirely from fresh ingredients.  I would have to say that Stored Foods Night just got a little bit better!

Our Stored Foods dinner