Grandma Ruth's Mac n Cheese

We all have comfort foods. Whether it be chill, or spaghetti, you have that recipe where you know its ingredients by heart and when you announce you're making it, your whole family smiles. This is that dish for me.

My grandmother is an amazing woman. She, like the rest of her family, enjoys good food. But, she also knows how put a delicious meal on the table that everyone loves, without standing in front of the stove for four hours. When our whole family gets together, theres an unspoken tradition that we have this mac n cheese at least one of the nights. When my grandparents came to visit here in Swaziland, we made a special point to group to the grocery store and stock up on the cream cheese and cheese needed for this recipe. Over the past years of living so far from my family and where I grew up, I have realized that food is truly a way we can remember and reconnect. Not to dramatize this or anything, but every time I make this mac n cheese I can see our whole family seated around to next to the oval dining room table at my grandma Debbie's house. Any recipe that can do that, is a recipe worth its weight in gold.

You're probably thinking wait what? Who is Grandma Ruth? Well, she was my fathers grandma, so technically this is Great grandma Ruth's Mac n Cheese. I reckon it tastes the same no matter the specifics of familial labels surrounding the name.

A couple of years ago, my uncle and cousin were featured in an article alongside this recipe about fathers cooking with their children.  Heres the link: https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/food-dining/2015/06/16/food-savvy-dads-stove/oaW6i0XDQOS7lByZI0xMEM/story.html

Grandma Ruth's Mac n Cheese
 Yield: 6 servings
*If you don't add the parmesan, add a bit more salt.

Butter- to grease the pan
1 pound noodles or short pasta such as elbow macaroni or bow ties
1 container (16 oz) chunky plain cottage cheese
1 cup yogurt or sour cream
12 oz grated cheese such as monterey jack, cheddar, mozzarella or a mix
1/2 cup grated parmesan or other hard cheese (optional)*
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick) melted
1 cup breadcrumbs


Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 9x13 baking pan

Cook pasta in a pot of boiling water until al dente. Drain and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine cottage cheese, yogurt, grated cheese, parmesan, eggs, white pepper, and salt. Stir in drained pasta. Pour milk in steadily until the mixture becomes wet. Pour into the baking dish and spread it evenly out. Don't worry, its not an exact science.

In a small bowl, Stir melted butter and bread crumbs together with a fork until crumbly. Sprinkle over the mac n cheese and bake for 40 minutes. Don't be afraid to let your mac n cheese become richly and heavenly brown. Serve immediately.

This Mac and cheese can also be frozen after baking and reheated in the oven. Maximum freezer life, I'd say a month. But I highly doubt it would get to be that long. Sometimes we make two and eat one and freeze one. That works too.