Alton Brown's Baked Macaroni

Image and recipe taken from Food Network.

Alton Brown, once again you are my hero... This is by far the best Macaroni recipe ever. The Panko bread crumbs make all of the difference. Enjoy, and do try to save some, as Alton suggests at the bottom of the recipe.

This one is a classic, and the only competition that comes close is Sunny Anderson's Spicy Macaroni and Cheese.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound elbow macaroni
  
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon powdered mustard
• 3 cups milk
  
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 large egg
• 12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  
• Fresh black pepper
• 3 tablespoons butter (for topping)
  
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs (for topping)
  

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, in a separate pot, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and mustard and keep it moving for about five minutes. Make sure it's free of lumps. Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, and paprika. Simmer for ten minutes and remove the bay leaf.

Temper in the egg. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Fold the macaroni into the mix and pour into a 2-quart casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.

Melt the butter in a saute pan and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for five minutes before serving.

Remember to save leftovers for fried Macaroni and Cheese.

Perfect Potstickers

Image and recipe taken from Food Network.

Very special thanks to Alton Brown, from Food Network's Good Eats, for providing the basis of this recipe, Perfect Pot Stickers. His instructions for cooking the potstickers are flawless. If I had the time to follow his instructions to the 'T', I would have. So what, I made some modification.. Where Alton says 'Combine the first 11 ingredients', I say 'Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage'!

Yes. Breakfast sausage. I stole that idea from a friend's mom. Although, next time I'll stay true to the ingredients.

If you want to feel like a pro while you cook, this is a fun recipe. It's very high maintenance, and isn't too hard to follow.

We served this one with white rice and a frozen Asian vegetable bag.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1/4 cup finely chopped scallions
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped red bell pepper
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 teaspoons ketchup
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 35 to 40 small wonton wrappers
• Water, for sealing wontons
• 3 to 4 tablespoons vegetable oil, for frying
• 1 1/3 cups chicken stock, divided

Directions:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Combine the first 11 ingredients in a medium-size mixing bowl (pork through cayenne). Set aside.

To form the dumplings, remove 1 wonton wrapper from the package, covering the others with a damp cloth. Brush 2 of the edges of the wrapper lightly with water. Place 1/2 rounded teaspoon of the pork mixture in the center of the wrapper. Fold over, seal edges, and shape as desired. Set on a sheet pan and cover with a damp cloth. Repeat procedure until all of the filling is gone.

Heat a 12-inch saute pan over medium heat. Brush with vegetable oil once hot. Add 8 to 10 potstickers at a time to the pan and cook for 2 minutes, without touching. Once the 2 minutes are up, gently add 1/3 cup chicken stock to the pan, turn the heat down to low, cover, and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove wontons to a heatproof platter and place in the warm oven. Clean the pan in between batches by pouring in water and allowing the pan to deglaze. Repeat until all the wontons are cooked. Serve immediately.