How to make my Mac and Cheese and My Personal Jerk BBQ Sauce

Char | Posted on November 12, 2020 |

Macaroni and Cheese (Basic 3 cheese Version) and my Jerk BBQ Sauce

I have a couple of custom Mac and Cheese recipes which are well ( my secret) and those won’t ever be completely shared.
But I would like to share what I feel is the more common macaroni and cheese recipe with you now.

We all know the holiday season is upon us. Now ethnic jokes (hopefully no one takes offense) depending on your race and
background or even just family traditions..Mac and Cheese can be a side (us brown ethnic groups) or the main entree (probably everyone else)Also your brown friends will expect theirs to be baked, which is how I make mine. Meanwhile your other friends may enjoy it non baked.
Whether you are from the carribean and eat what is called Macaroni Pie or good ole Mainland USA and call it just mac and cheese,there are many
variations!

We have gourmet versions that include lobster,crab,bacon, anything you can think of. But the one everyone is most familiar with is just
that simple oooey gooey Mac and Cheese with that awesome sound when you are stirring and creating it.

Let’s get into how I make mine. It’s a bit of a mix of my Grandmom who raised me and my Aunt Janie’s recipe.

The Cheeses I use:
Philadelphia Cream Cheese 4 packs melted on stove with heavy cream mixed in
2 bags or 3 depending on how cheesy you like, of sharp cheddar cheese
Ricotta mixed with egg
and either Gouda or Goat Cheese
and one or 2 jars of the Ragu Cheese Sauce (found on the spaghetti sauce aisle)

Salt and Pepper

(I don’t put sugar in my Mac and Cheese but you can, my granny did)

Of course you’ll also need either food processed crackers (pulverize to a fine breading consistency)
Or you can use store bought bread crumbs
Macaroni and cheese (elbow pasta) as many boxes as you’ll need to feed the amount of people you are feeding. 2 boxes usually makes enough for about 15 people.

Evaporated Milk 2 cans, you can also use coconut milk in its place
and LOTS of butter.

I assume you know how to boil the noodles till they are cooked but not to the point of being too too soft as they also need to bake and you don’t want them to turn to mush as they cook even more.

Drain them.

I like to have all my other cheeses shredded and mixed in a bowl and ready to go. But the butter and Heavy cream, evaporated milk and melted Philadelphia Cream Cheese
Go in first. Mix them up evenly throughout your mixture to make sure each noodle gets some. Pour in the Ragu Cheese Sauce now also and be sure to mix it throughout.

Next we add all the other shredded cheeses from the mixture in the bowl. Again Mix thoroughly. What the spoon won’t do…use both your washed and gloved hands to do.

Next use remaining cheese on top to caramelize as it bakes , then top with your cracker or bread crumbs mixture.

Allow to bake 45 min to an hour.

Take it out and let it set for about 15 min.

Then it’s ready to serve.

Next up: My self made JERK BBQ sauce mix

To make it you need
One beer ( bottled use any kind you prefer)
Apple Cider Vinegar
Ketchup
Mustard
Lime Juice
A jar of Jerk seasoning from your local carribean market
Brown Sugar
Old Bay
Dark heavy natural molasses
Sazon seasoning
Garlic Powder
2 red chili peppers
4 cloves of Garlic
Powdered Cayenne Pepper

(when adding the vinegar I’d say I use about 3/4 a cup, Again I don’t really cook by measurement I’ve got it all memorized in my head lol.)

You want close to 1 cup brown sugar

and I’d say 3 teaspoons of the old bay

be as generous with the Lime juice as you like

4 generous spoons of mustard

and half of a bottle of Ketchup

Use about half the jar of the jerk seasoning

use the Garlic Powder to suit your tastes. I use about 3 spoons of it

and about 1/4 cup of dark molasses.

2 or 3 spoons of powdered Cayenne

You want to put these all in the pot together
including the split chili pepper and the 4 garlic cloves.

let them come to a boil then turn down to simmer for 4 hours ( stirring often)