So, I’ve been craving some good ol’ comfort food lately, and what’s better than mac and cheese, right? But not just any mac and cheese – I’m talking about that creamy, dreamy stuff from California Pizza Kitchen. I mean, who can resist that?
I decided to roll up my sleeves and try to make it myself. I mean, how hard could it be? Well, let me tell you, it was a bit of an adventure, but a delicious one at that!
First things first, I gathered all my ingredients. Now, the internet says you only need four things, but I kinda went a bit extra (oops!). I grabbed some elbow macaroni, unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, whole milk, and of course, cheese! I used a mix of cheddar and Gruyere because, why not? And yeah, I threw in some salt and pepper for good measure.
Then, I got cooking! I boiled the pasta until it was nice and soft, just like I like it. While that was going on, I melted the butter in a separate pot. Once it was all melty and bubbly, I whisked in the flour to make a roux. It sounds fancy, but it’s basically just a thickener for the sauce.
Next, I slowly poured in the milk while whisking like a madman. You gotta keep whisking; otherwise, it gets all lumpy, and nobody wants that. Once it started to thicken up, I added in the cheese, bit by bit, stirring until it was all melted and gooey and wonderful.
- Boil pasta
- Melt butter
- Whisk in flour
- Slowly add milk
- Add cheese
After that, I mixed the cooked pasta into the cheese sauce. Oh boy, it smelled so good at this point, I could barely wait to dig in. But I’m a patient guy…sometimes.
Now, some folks might stop here, but I decided to bake it for a bit. I poured the whole mixture into a baking dish, sprinkled some extra cheese on top (because, again, why not?), and popped it in the oven. I had it at 400 degrees, just like the frozen pizza instructions said. It only needed like 15-20 minutes to get all bubbly and golden brown on top.
- Mix pasta and cheese sauce
- Pour into a baking dish
- Sprinkle extra cheese
- Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes
The Result
And there you have it! My homemade California Pizza Kitchen-style mac and cheese. It might not be exactly the same, but it was pretty darn close. And you know what? It was delicious! Creamy, cheesy, and oh-so-satisfying. I even added a little extra milk while it sat because I noticed it started to thicken up a bit too much. That helped keep it nice and creamy.
So, if you’re ever in the mood for some serious comfort food, give this a try. It’s totally worth the effort, and you might even impress yourself with your cooking skills! It’s not exactly like Gordon Ramsay’s method, but hey, it worked for me.
