Macaroni & Cheese Deluxe

scratchcook's Note:

I saw this on Everyday Foods and thought my kids would love it. Since we need to eat gluten free, I just made the substitutions noted below. It is a true comfort food and is soooo good!

• Total Time: 45 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• coarse salt and pepper
• 1 lb elbow macaroni , cooked and drained
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 small onion , chopped
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 4 cups milk
• 1⁄8; teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 ¼ cups cheddar cheese , shredded
• 1 ¼ cups farmer cheese , shredded
• 1 lb hot dog , sliced
• 2 slices bread

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Cook pasta, and drain; reserve. Meanwhile, in a 5-quart heavy pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in flour to coat onion. In a slow steady stream, whisk in milk until there are no lumps.
2. Cook, whisking often, until mixture is thick and bubbly and coats the back of a wooden spoon, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in cayenne, if using, and 1 cup each yellow and white cheddar cheese. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
3. Toss pasta with cheese mixture; fold in hot dogs. Transfer to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish or individual dishes. Set aside.
4. In a food processor, pulse bread until large crumbs form. Toss together with remaining ¼ cup each white and yellow cheddar, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Top pasta with breadcrumb mixture. Bake until top is golden, about 30 minutes.
5. For gluten-free cooking, simply substitute gluten-free macaroni for regular macaroni and gluten-free bread for the bread slices. We also use kosher beef dogs instead of traditional hot dogs.