mac and cheese with greek yogurt

Thanks to my two fantastic Jewish roomies in LA, when fall rolls around, I get excited for the Jewish holidays and their gift of out of this world food traditions.

Do you think I married a Jewish man by accident?! I think NOT.

Al’s favorite traditional Jewish foods include; matzo ball soup and potato latkes.

Last year I attempted matzo ball soup from scratch and accidentally added so many cloves that it was a bigger culinary bomb than anything I’ve ever attempted. This year I planned to redeem myself, but I’m suffering from a MAJOR case of preggo brain (32 weeks!) and ended up ordering from Manny’s Deli.

HOWEVER- I did re create my famous latkes which are honestly so stupid simple, that anyone can make them. And now I’ll share them with you.

The Wifey’s Shiska Potato Latkes

What You Need/Grocery List:

a bag of frozen hash browns (they should be left out to thaw before starting your cooking)
a small yellow onion
two eggs
vegetable oil
salt and pepper
flour
sour cream/greek yogurt and or apple sauce for dipping
a strainer
a slotted spoon
a large plate and paper towels

What To Do:

pour your vegetable oil until it’s about a half an inch in a large pan and heat on low/medium. you DONT want it to burn but it needs to pass the sizzle test when ready. (drop a piece of hash brown in there and if it sizzles then it’s ready to go)

put your thawed bag of hash browns into a strainer, cover with a napkin or paper towel and smash them down till most of the water has drained

chop your yellow onion into small pieces (you can also buy pre chopped onion)

dump 3 tablespoons of flour into a bowl

good job! now add your two eggs, and chopped onion, plus a dash of salt and pepper and stir it all up.

it should mix pretty well and look like this. now add your hash browns and give them a bath of your egg mix

now is a GREAT time to check your oil since we’re almost ready to start cooking.
now is also a great time to get out a large plate and line it with paper towels for blotting.
oil is perfect? great, use your hands and roll these little bad boys into little balls- about the same size as if you were making cookies. (not huge, but not tiny)

now, CAREFULLY lower about 3 of the potato balls into the oil at a time. If you drop them, the oil will fly everywhere, ruin your cute outfit and burn like hell…so don’t. then flatten them into “pancakes” with your slotted spoon.
let them cook for about two mins- please resist the urge to check them every 10 seconds or they will fall apart.
after your 2 mins are up , then you are allowed to pick them up with your slotted spoon and take a look at the other side- are they golden brown? great- then flip them over. if not- wait another 30 seconds or so and check again.

depending on how you and your love like them cooked, they should look something like this. if you prefer more well done, let them sit longer (duh).
let the pancakes sizzle for around two mins on the other side, do a check and if they look ready, ONE AT A TIME- use your slotted spoon to lift them out (let the oil drain thru the spoon) and put them on the plate with paper towel, blot them.

oh hey, aren’t I pretty??

you’ll want to serve these right away – unless you are cooking for a ton of people and in that case, cover them in foil to keep them warm

serve them with dipper of your choice and watch everyone fall in love with you as they eat them. MAZEL.

our holiday table for two

There are literally a zillion ways to make mac and cheese and everyone has their own technique and recipe.

If you haven’t noticed- I like to do things that are fast and easy and this Mac Daddy doesn’t get any more basic- without losing any flavor.

Now, I prefer to use a slow cooker or croc pot because that literally takes no effort- BUT not everyone has those appliances so today I’m sharing a ONE POT recipe. Guys, it’s so easy that it’s almost ridiculous. You will never use a box again- for reals.

I love how the greek yogurt and goat cheese give it a little kick, yet this recipe is still mild enough that your kids and picky friends will love it too.

The way I made it omits a lot of the decadent noise that can make this comfort food so fatty, so you can inhale this (almost) guilt free. HOWEVER- if you don’t care about calories- rock on and add 1/2 cup milk and 2 tbs of butter when you add the goat cheese and greek yogurt.

What You Need:

a box of macaroni – penne and elbow are my favs
3 laughing cow triangles- I used the swiss flavor this time
2 cups of cheddar cheese, 1 cup of mozzarella
4 tbs greek yogurt
2 tbs goat cheese
a dash of: salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika
a big spoon for mixing
a pot and a lid to strain with

What To Do:

add salt to water and boil
add entire box to pot and stir about every min for 6 mins- you want this a tad al dente
drain most of the water out- leave about 1/2 cup in there for the mixing
add goat cheese and greek yogurt and stir immediately- till the pasta is coated (this is when you’d add the butter and milk if you’re using it)
add the cheddar and mozzarella and mix
cover with a lid and turn your burner on low heat, wait a min or so and stir again, let it sit and so on until everything is melty magic
dash salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprkia- then mix well . dash again with salt, pepper and paprika- DO NOT ADD MORE GARLIC SALT. I did the first time and had to do major damage control- if you do this then add more cheese and 1/2 cup of milk- stir till evenly coated
serve and watch them die with happiness

MAKE THE MAC DADDY LIKE THE WIFEY:

The.wifey.kitchen

"She's more than my girl , she's my wifey"

mac and cheese with greek yogurt

The Wifey’s Shiska Potato Latkes

Mac Daddy Mac and Cheese

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