Baked Penne & Cheese and the Large Binocular Telescope

This blog post has been a long time coming. Back in October (I know, I know. Grad school took over my life. I'm working on it...), my friend and officemate Cecilia and I went with a bunch of awesome grad students in the optics department to Mt. Graham in southeastern Arizona. What's on Mt. Graham? Oh, only the largest mirrored telescope in North America, the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT). The LBT has TWO 8.4 meter mirrors and nightly looks into the cosmos, searching for galaxies, nebulas, and exoplanets in the optical and infrared. We were privileged enough to take a tour of the observatory. I thought I'd share some pictures with you! (Sorry... I totally just geeked out on you.)

(above photo taken by Wiphu Rujokaparn and Marc-Andre Bessel)

I learned so much, and it was great to escape Tucson for the weekend to a cool, fall mountain top. If you are in the area, I recommend camping up here. Beautiful views in every direction, amazing sunsets, and yellow aspens should be enough to tempt you. It got cold in the night, but that was nothing a little campfire and whiskey couldn't solve. Thanks again, optics kids!

This Baked Penne and Cheese is pure comfort food. After camping in the cold, I just wanted to make something that felt like home. You can of course use macaroni, but I like penne because the cheese sauce fills the long tubes for extra, gooey wonderfulness. The secret ingredient is freshly ground nutmeg. It adds a warm, nutty flavor making this dish all the more savory.

This casserole can be made ahead of time and reheated, and stores well in the fridge for leftovers. Any kind of milk can be substituted as well. I often make this with soy milk and it tastes just as rich and delicious. I hope you enjoy one of my favorite default dinners.

one year ago: Chocolate Crackle Cookies

Baked Penne & Cheese

yields 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 pound penne

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

3 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded

2 teaspoons salt

Fresh black pepper to taste

shot of Tabasco sauce

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 over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until smooth and bubbling. Stir in the milk. Over medium-high heat, stir frequently until bubbling.

Reduce to low heat. Stir in cheese, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and Tabasco sauce. Fold the macaroni into the mix and pour into a 9x9-inch casserole dish.  

Bake for 30-40 minutes, until bubbling and beginning to brown on the top. Remove from oven and rest for a few minutes before serving.

Enjoy.