Advanced Cooking Class-Mac n Cheese Week 1

The BEST Homemade Baked Mac and Cheese

The BEST Homemade Mac and Cheese of your LIFE. Outrageously cheesy, ultra-creamy, and topped with a crunchy Panko-Parmesan topping, this mac and cheese recipe is most definitely a keeper. I used three different cheese and a homemade cheese sauce to take this macaroni and cheese recipe over the top.

Ingredients

16 oz Cellentani pasta, cooked (or other tubular pasta of your choice

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6 tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour

4 cups whole milk
2 cups Sharp, Medium, or Mild Cheddar cheese shredded
2 cups Mozzarella cheese shredded

2 cups of Colby or Peppered Jack cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Topping

1 1/2 cups panko crumbs
4 tbsp butter melted
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese shredded
1/4 tsp smoked paprika (or regular paprika)

Instructions

1.     Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a large 3 qt or 4 qt baking dish and set aside. Combine shredded cheeses in a large bowl and set aside.

2.  Cook the pasta one minute shy of al dente according to the package instructions. Remove from heat, drain, and place in a large bowl.

3.  Drizzle pasta with olive oil and stir to coat pasta. Set aside to cool while preparing cheese sauce.

4.  Melt butter in a deep saucepan, Dutch oven, or stockpot.

5.  Whisk in flour over medium heat and continue whisking for about 1 minute until bubbly and golden.

6.  Gradually whisk in the milk and heavy cream until nice and smooth. Continue whisking until you see bubbles on the surface and then continue cooking and whisking for another 2 minutes. Whisk in salt and pepper.

7.  Add two cups of shredded cheese and whisk until smooth. Add another two cups of shredded cheese and continue whisking until creamy and smooth. The sauce should be nice and thick.

8.     Stir in the cooked pasta until combined and pasta is fully coated with the cheese sauce.

9.     Pour half of the mac and cheese into the prepared baking dish. Top with remaining 2 cups of shredded cheese and then the remaining mac and cheese.

10.  In a small bowl, combine panko crumbs, Parmesan cheese, melted butter, and paprika. Sprinkle over the top and bake until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Apple Crisp Week 1

The Best Apple Crisp... EVER

Ingredients

8 cups apples

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 cup sugar

1 1/2 cup flour

1 1/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup softened butter

2 cups oatmeal.

Optional toppings

Vanilla ice cream

Whipped cream

Caramel syrup

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350* and grease a 9x13 casserole dish.

2. Peel, core, and thinly slice the apples. I currently use an apple peeler/corer. You can also simply peel the skin off and slice the apple thinly by hand. 

3. Place apples in a 9x13 casserole dish. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top of apples.

4. In a large bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, butter, and oatmeal--working mixture together with hands.  Yes, your hands will get messy. A spoon simply doesn't work as well!

5. Spread oatmeal mixture evenly over the top of the apples, and bake at 350 for an hour. You can shorten the baking time by 10-15 minutes for slightly firmer apples. Keep an eye on the crisp to make sure it doesn't burn. 

6. Serve with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, caramel syrup, or all three! I've also sprinkled a little sea salt on with the caramel for a salted caramel apple crisp - amazing! 

Welcome to Cooking/Baking Spring 2019

Welcome to Cooking and Baking for Kids! – Spring 2019

I believe the kitchen is the tastiest place to learn! Taking risks, learning from mistakes, following directions, fostering creativity, curiosity, resilience, becoming independent, and trying new things: these are qualities we seek to develop in our children and there’s no better place to nurture them than the kitchen. This is a “hands-on” class and every child will get participate in every lesson. 

Please let me know if your child has ANY food allergies or sensitivities as soon as possible. Please E-mail me at ilcscookingelective@gmail.com

The cost for this Elective is $75. Payment is due by Friday, April 12, 2019. For your convenience, payment may be made via Venmo @ilcscookingelective or PayPal at ilcscookingelective@gmail.com  *PLEASE select “Sending to a friend” icon to avoid additional charges. Check or cash may be dropped off in the office at either campus or sent in with your student. Please make checks payable directly to: Esmeralda Williams. Don’t forget to include your child’s name with any payment.

Recipes for this trimester are available on our Cooking/Baking blog website. Please visit this site for ALL recipes, www.ilcscookingelective.blogspot.com

*Inland Leaders Foundation offers Scholarships for elective classes. To receive a Scholarship; please fill out the Scholarship form online at www.inlandleaders.com  

Click on Departments, scroll down to Electives, click on Elective Scholarship Form, fill it out and submit. 

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Esmeralda Williams

805 201 5865

ilcscookingelective@gmail.com 

*Inland Leaders Foundation www.ilfoundation.net

Week 9 Empanadas

Baked Empanadas

TO MAKE THESE BAKED EMPANADAS YOU WILL NEED:

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

1 Medium Onion, finely diced

1 Carrot, finely diced

1 Celery Rib, finely diced

2-3 Garlic Cloves, minced

1 pound Ground Sirloin or ground beef

1 teaspoon Salt

½ teaspoon Dried Oregano

¼ teaspoon Cumin

¼ teaspoon Black Pepper, or to taste

8 ounces Can Tomato Sauce

2 tablespoons Water, divided

1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce

10 Empanada Discs (13-ounce package) or pie crusts

1 Egg, slightly beaten

YOU WILL ALSO NEED

Large baking sheet

Parchment paper

Pastry brush

Fork

Paring knife

COOK’S NOTES

Depending on where you live you may be able to find empanada discs in the freezer section of larger food chains or Latin markets. They’re round, thin dough discs that come frozen, usually ten to a pack. Defrost the discs according to package directions prior to use.

PREP WORK

In a recipe where the spices are all added at the same time, prepare a seasoning mix. That way you’re not standing over the pot measuring out spices. Add the salt, dried oregano, cumin, and black pepper to a small bowl. Stir to combine.

Dice the onion, carrot, and celery. They’re all going in at the same time to keep them in the same bowl. Mince the garlic.