When I first moved to New York and was in grad school, I spent a lot of time on student film sets. It didn’t take long for me to get bored with that situation because it turns out that I find the repetitive hurry-up-and-wait of being on set to be utterly dull. I like screenwriting and production design, but with the way the course (and life) worked, I couldn’t be in charge of those things on every shoot.
Unfortunately though, I’m not gifted with much else in that realm. I’m not confident enough to direct. I like to act, but was/am too timid to pursue it in any real way. My hearing is terrible, so sound is out. My arms aren’t strong enough to hold the boom mic for very long. Editing is just a “no.” The list of disqualifications goes on and on, save for one notable exception: I can cook. And so it was that the majority of my production course credits came from being craft services, a.k.a. the on-set caterer.
Now, being “crafty” for a student film isn’t the same as what you see when you spot film shoots on the streets of New York. Not even close. I didn’t have a truck or a crew; there was no oven or microwave. I was limited to what I could make in my Upper West Side apartment and transport in a cooler and what I could prepare on-set on a single electric burner. Oh, and it had to be cheap. Options were extremely limited—there were a lot of prepared salads and sandwiches—but my 15 Minute Stovetop Mac & Cheese was always a crowd pleaser.
I mean, what’s not to love? This macaroni & cheese has all the cheesy flavor and creamy texture you want, but is less than half the work of most traditional recipes. Where those often require a pot, a pan, a roux, making a mornay sauce, and probably an oven, this recipe requires almost none of that…but it still delivers big-time.
It also requires just six ingredients (seven, if you want to garnish with parsley) and two of them are salt and pepper. Whaaaaat. Since 15 Minute Stovetop Mac & Cheese is a from-scratch recipe, it will cost a few dollars more than the stuff in the blue box, but it’s also infinitely tastier. I’ll take real melted cheese over reconstituted powdered cheese any day. It’s not even a contest.
This recipe really does comes together in fifteen minutes, so it’s ideal for busy weeknights or filling a craving or feeding a bunch of student filmmakers on the fly.
- Set a pot of water to boil.
- Grate the cheddar and cut the cream cheese into pieces.
- Boil and strain the macaroni. Return it to the pot.
- Stir in the cheeses, a touch of dijon mustard, and salt & pepper. Loosen the sauce up with a little pasta water if you like.
That’s literally it. The entire recipe. Boom. Done. Finito.
Right now, you’re just one pot, four steps, six ingredients, and fifteen minutes away from diving fork-first into a bowl of creamy, cheesy magic. What are you waiting for?!
15 Minute Stovetop Mac & Cheese
makes 6-8 servings
16 ounces (1 pound or 4 cups) dry elbow macaroni noodles
12 ounces freshly grated cheese of choice (I like extra sharp cheddar)
6 ounces (3/4 brick) full-fat brick-style cream cheese, cut into pieces
1/2 teaspoon prepared dijon mustard
1/2-1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
1/4-1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
parsley, to garnish (optional)
Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Season well with salt. Prepare elbow macaroni according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the starchy cooking liquid.
Return cooked macaroni to the pot. Fold in grated cheese. Add cream cheese, stirring until melted. Add splashes of reserved starchy pasta cooking liquid until desired consistency is reached. Stir in dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Taste for seasoning. Garnish with parsley, if desired, and serve.
Mac & Cheese is best fresh, but leftovers may be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
For weeks, I have been eagerly waiting to share this recipe with you. I’d love to say that I feel this way with every single recipe in my 
So, what’s so special about this recipe? Well, for one, it’s a 
These Spinach-Artichoke Twice-Baked Potatoes are so delicious, y’all. They’re soft and creamy on the inside and brown and crispy on the outside. Oh, and there’s melted cheese involved. And a serving of vegetables. Yesssss.
If, by chance, you’ve never heard of or eaten a twice-baked potato…well, I’m sorry that you’ve been deprived for so long. Luckily, you can remedy that today! Let me give you a quick rundown.
As their name states, twice-baked potatoes are potatoes that have been baked two times. The first time, they are rubbed down with oil and salt and baked until tender.
Next the potato innards are scooped out, leaving behind four potato skin “boats.” The potato flesh is mashed with other ingredients to create a filling.
Traditionally, those include sour cream, bacon, cheddar, and scallions, but this recipe deviates from the norm in favor of lemony sautéed spinach, chopped artichoke hearts, butter, cream cheese, and monterey jack cheese. YUM.
The filling is then spooned back into those potato skins, topped with more cheese, and baked a second time, until golden and a bit crispy ❤ 
I prefer to serve Spinach-Artichoke Twice-Baked Potatoes as a main, but they also work well alongside chicken or pork. However you serve these potatoes though, they’re guaranteed to leave you wishing you’d doubled the batch.
When I think back on the Super Bowl parties of my youth (and since I am Texan, there were a lot), I don’t remember who played or much else, except for the food. I’ve said it 
Sometimes when I am bored, I tune out and think about recipes. That said, you won’t be surprised to learn that the idea for these Puff Pastry Pigs in Blankets popped into my head during the last Super Bowl.
These are the sorts of things I think about instead of thinking about things that are actually important. I mean, *someone* has to think about the 
Puff Pastry Pigs in Blankets are exactly what they sound like: classic pigs in blankets (aka cocktail wieners wrapped in yeast dough), made with puff pastry. Miniature hotdogs wrapped in flaky, buttery pastry? Sign me up!
These little morsels are super easy to make. Start by rolling out a sheet of puff pastry. I like to use 
Spread a thin layer of dijon mustard over the top and then slice the pastry into strips. Wrap each strip around a cocktail wiener…
…then brush them all with egg wash and sprinkle them with poppyseeds and/or sesame seeds. This is purely for aesthetics, but I like the added texture it provides.
Bake the pigs in blankets for 15 minutes at 450F. The pastry will be gorgeous and golden when they’re done.
Serve ‘em with ketchup and more dijon mustard, or any condiment you like. Make sure to hoard a few for yourself before putting them on your Super Bowl table though because they’ll disappear before you know it, especially if I’m invited.
Have you made these or any of my other weeknight meals? Let me know in the comments or on 
Remember that 
I like to freeze the leftovers by the pound, which works out to about four loosely-packed cups of pulled pork. That way, I can thaw just a little bit at a time. You know, for more sandwiches. Or salads. Or nachos. Or eating directly out of the refrigerator.
All of those are great options (especially that last one), but these Pork Enchiladas with Smoky Chipotle Sauce are almost certainly my favorite way to repurpose my leftovers! Succulent pulled pork wrapped in tender corn tortillas, covered in a simple homemade sauce, smothered with monterey jack and baked until bubbly? Sign me up!
I absolutely love these enchiladas. I made a big batch last weekend, ate them for dinner for four days, and was still sad to see them go! They’re meaty and smoky, cheesy without being greasy or heavy, and since the filling is prepared beforehand, they’re pretty low-maintenance as far as enchiladas go. Did I mention that the sauce can be made ahead, too?
Pork Enchiladas with Smoky Chipotle Sauce would be great with rice and beans, but I like them paired with a big salad and a few slices of avocado. They’re also the sort of dish that works just as well for a weeknight as they do for a dinner party.
On that note, if you’re making these for a dinner party, I would like to be invited, okay? Okay.
e2 bakes brooklyn 