Tuscan Mac ‘N’ Cheese

This is an old Better Homes & Garden Recipe I’ve been making for years.  It’s a lot of work, but it’s SO worth it (the smell of the dried thyme sauce alone is heavenly).  I use it for 3 types of occasions: it’s the holidays and I’ve got family it town.  I need to feed 10 people on a night which is not an actual holiday, and would like something not overly similar to what I’ll be making for Christmas or Thanksgiving.  I double this with salad, bread, and a dessert, and it will feed 12, maybe even more.  It’s HUGE.  I also make this for family get togethers when I want something I can make in advance.  OR, if I’m doing a lot of baking in the kitchen on a Sunday, this is a great “work around” recipe.  You can easily do pieces and parts of it a time, while your making other things (i.e. holiday prep work), and after you’ve baked cookies all day, you’ll still have dinner ready for your family at a decent time.

 

8 ounces of dried Gemelli pasta or elbow macaroni (I like to use Cavatappi for an added twist…literallly)

8 ounces bulk sweet or mild Italian sausage

8 ounce package cream cheese, cut into cubes and softened

2 cups of crusty Italian bread, cut into 1″ cubes (I buy a loaf of French, chop it up, and put it in the oven for about 10 minutes)

1 cup pitted Kalamata olives, halved (I quarter to hide them from my kids)

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp flour

1 tsp dried sage, crushed

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp dried thyme, crushed

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1.5 cups milk

A few Roma tomatoes, sliced

1/2 cup shredded Asiago or Parmesan cheese

 

Cook pasta, drain.  Brown sausage, drain.  In a very large bowl, combine sausage, cooked pasta, cream cheese, bread cubes, olives, and mozzarella cheese.  Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, melt butter, stir in flour, sage, salt, thyme, and cayenne pepper.  Add milk all at once.  Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly.  Pour over pasta mixture, stir gently.  Transfer to an ungreased 2-quart casserole (if you are doubling you’ll need 2 or a much larger casserole dish).

Bake, covered, in a 350 oven for 35 minutes.  Top with tomato slices, and Asiago or Parmesan cheese.  Bake, uncovered, for 15 min, or until heated through.  Let it sit for about 10 or 15 minutes before serving.  Sprinkle with fresh thyme if you have some on hand.