Recipe - Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole | Distant Shores Sailing Newsletters

Recipe - Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole



Potluck suppers and dock dinners are popular social occasions for sailors whether they are out cruising or at home moored at the local yacht club. A collection of good recipes for dishes to contribute to a potluck gathering seems essential to the cruising lifestyle :-)

So this week's recipe, Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole, is a potluck favourite of mine. It is simple and a hit with sailors of any age.

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Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole

It is also a good meal to prepare for a passage because you can cut it up into convenient serving-sized squares and eat it hot or cold. In bad weather at sea it is easy to digest and gives you lots of energy. You can dress it up by adding more vegetables or chunks of chicken, tuna or ham but today I am giving you the traditional recipe.

Paul and I are home at the moment and last weekend we attended a potluck supper at Lagoon City Yacht Club in Ontario, Canada, one of the many events being hosted to celebrate the club's 50th anniversary. Since we just flew home from the Bahamas, Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole was what I contributed to the meal. It is a very traditional dish in the Bahamas where it is often served at dinner as the main starch.

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Potluck Supper at Lagoon City Yacht Club


My niece, Giorgia, and Paul's nephew, Sam, stayed with us last week and attended the Junior Sailing Program at LCYC so the LCYC Potluck Supper was also a nice way to conclude the week and celebrate having a couple of other sailors in the family!

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Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole
Ingredients
1 X 1 lb/500 gram box of elbow macaroni (about 5 cups uncooked macaroni)
¼ cup/1/2 stick of butter
2 Tbsp/30 ml minced onion (about ½ the onion pictured)
2 Tbsp/30 ml minced green pepper
1 scotch bonnet pepper (Bahamians call these goat peppers), seeded, deveined and finely chopped. (Alternative: a jalapeño pepper or hot banana peppers)
1 lb/500 grams of grated cheddar cheese (6 cups or 3 X 8 oz packages)
2 X 12 oz/370 ml can of evaporated milk (about 3 cups total)
½ tsp/2 ml ground black pepper
½ tsp/2 ml salt
a few dashes hot sauce
3 eggs beaten
2 tsp/10 ml paprika

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Ingredients for Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole


Method
Preheat oven to 400º F.

Boil a large pot of water to which a couple of pinches of salt have been added.

Add pasta and follow package directions to cook al dente, about 6 or 7 minutes.

Drain pasta then return it to the warm pot and add butter, stirring until melted.

Add minced onion, green pepper and scotch bonnet pepper (or alternative) and stir.

Next add about ¾ of the grated cheddar cheese, stirring until melted.

Then add milk, salt, pepper, hot sauce and beaten eggs, mixing quickly.

Transfer macaroni into a 9 X 13 inch baking pan or casserole dish.

Sprinkle with remaining cheese, then paprika.

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Macaroni mixture ready to go into the oven


Bake at 400º F for 35-40 minutes until top is golden brown.

Remove from oven and allow macaroni to cool for 45-50 minutes. THIS IS ESSENTIAL. Bahamian Macaroni and Cheese Casserole is cut into squares for serving (which makes it a good potluck supper dish) so it needs to set. It is not scooped up with a spoon. It can be reheated before serving if you like but needs to cool first to set. It is also good served at room temperature.

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Out of the oven golden brown and resting for 45-50 minutes to set

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