Mac and Cheese with Balsamic Glazed Caramelized Onions and Crispy Bacon
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 onions large, sliced
- pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 8 strips thick bacon
- 8 oz elbow pasta
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1 cup white Cheddar cheese freshly shredded
- 1/2 cup Gruyere freshly shredded
- 1/4 teaspoon salt or more – to taste
- cayenne pepper to taste
- a pinch of paprika
Instructions
Caramelize Onions:
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil on high heat in a large skillet, when oil is heated, add sliced onions and cook on high heat for about 10 minutes, constantly stirring with spatula. The onions should start to brown, but without burning .
- Reduce heat to medium and continue cooking onions for 10 more minutes, continuing to stir, as onions brown even more without burning. At this point add just a pinch of salt over onions.
- Continue cooking for 20 more minutes on low heat, stirring occasionally to make sure onions don’t stick to the bottom of the pan or burn. Total you should have cooked onions for 40 minutes.
- Remove from heat and sprinkle onions with a small amount of balsamic vinegar to deglaze the pan. Using spatula, mix the onions, scraping the bottom of the pan and coating onions.
Mac and cheese:
- Cook bacon in the oven at 350 F until crispy. Drain the bacon and chop into small pieces.
- Cook elbow macaroni according to package instructions. Rinse the macaroni under cold running water, drain. Set aside.
- In a large saucepan, add heavy cream, milk, sharp white cheddar cheese, Gruyere cheese and 1/4 teaspoon salt on medium heat, stir and mix, until cheeses start to blend. Add black pepper, Cayenne pepper and paprika to taste,. Add elbow macaroni to the creamy sauce, stir to coat on low heat for about 5-10 minutes until cheese melts completely and coats the macaroni.
- Add caramelized onions and chopped bacon to the creamy macaroni.
- Garnish with additional finely shredded gruyere and minced parsley.