Contest-Winning Pepper Jack Mac — My Twenty-First Birthday

I turned twenty-one on Wednesday. The rehearsal-dinner job was Saturday. The week was the largest week the spring has built toward, and the largest stretch of my adult life so far. I will write about both in this post because both belong to the same week and they make sense only together.

The pepper jack mac and cheese is a contest-winning recipe — technically winning of a small county-fair-tier recipe contest at the Tulsa State Fair in 2019 when I was seventeen, my second blue-ribbon win at the fair (the first was the lemon meringue pie at sixteen). The recipe is mac and cheese built around a sharp pepper-jack base with a roasted-poblano puree mixed into the sauce for depth, topped with a buttered-panko crust, baked until the top is golden. The dish is rich and slightly spicy and the panko crust gives it textural contrast.

I had not made the recipe since 2019. I made it Sunday for the birthday-and-job double-celebration dinner at the apartment with Mama and Cody both up from Sapulpa. The recipe came back through my hands like it had been waiting. The proportions, the sauce-thickening point, the order of the cheese additions — my hands knew the recipe even though my conscious memory had not run through it in three years.

The cooking and the eating around the recipe were the smaller story of the week. The larger story was the wedding-rehearsal dinner Saturday night and the way it landed. Both stories ended well. Both belong to the twenty-first birthday week.

Contest-Winning Pepper Jack Mac

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 3 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cups shredded Pepper Jack cheese, divided
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup pickled jalapeño slices, optional for topping

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook macaroni according to package directions until just al dente. Drain and set aside.
2. Build the roux. In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan or cast iron skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes until the mixture turns lightly golden and smells nutty.
3. Add the liquid. Gradually pour in the milk and heavy cream, whisking continuously to prevent lumps. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook 4—5 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
4. Season the sauce. Stir in dry mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, salt, and black pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
5. Melt in the cheese. Reduce heat to low. Add 1 1/2 cups of the Pepper Jack and all of the cheddar, a handful at a time, stirring until each addition is fully melted and the sauce is smooth and glossy.
6. Combine. Add the drained macaroni to the cheese sauce and stir to coat every noodle evenly. Cook over low heat for 2—3 minutes until heated through.
7. Finish and serve. Transfer to a serving dish or serve straight from the skillet. Top with the remaining 1/2 cup Pepper Jack and jalapeño slices if desired. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 520 | Protein: 22g | Fat: 27g | Carbs: 48g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 610mg