It's Tuesday, or as Lou puts it, NINE DAYS 'TIL CHRISTMAS! This excitement from a kid who doesn't even really want presents, and couldn't come up with a single thing she wanted when she sat on the big guy's lap. (Though that is, admittedly, a pretty pressured situation). But in regular Tuesday terms, it's what's for dinner night, and let's return to some staples, shall we?

If you've been reading this blog or have ever met me, you know that I despise cold weather. I don't understand snow sports, except as an excuse for hot chocolate, and I don't find anything wonderland-y about winter. For these several months a year (last year six!) do take solace in wintry comfort food goodness, packed with carbs and fat and more carbs. This easy, delicious and sophisticated mac n' cheese became a fast favorite in our house. It is very comforting, but it also has some real veggies in it (I almost double up on the amount of broccoli in the original recipe) and goes great with more veggie sides (here with roasted Brussels sprouts. Because if you're going to make like a trendy restaurant circa 2012, you have to have a side of Brussels Sprouts with your fancy mac n' cheese). It keeps and reheats well and even freezes well, if you're into making a casserole/hot dish (depending on where you hail from). But for the night of, I recommend make it stove top, and fake a baked crust by topping with pan-seared panko, which yields the creamiest, lightest, best results. Do yourself a favor and don't skip out on the toasted panko - it really makes the dish.

If you're interested, check out Oh My Veggies, the source of this recipe. She's got great meatless meals, and in this instance, she shares all her mac n' cheese wisdom, which I appreciated. She's also great at food photography, if you're into that sort of thing. Really, if you want more appetizing photos than the ones I take five minutes before we dig into dinner, check hers out - they're lovely.

Pesto Mac n' Cheese with Broccoli

Recipe lightly adapted from Oh My Veggies

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 12 oz. elbow macaroni or any short pasta. We're partial to ziti and fusilli and we use whole wheat.
• 1 large broccoli crown, broken into florets, stems peeled and diced
• 2 c. reduced fat milk, warmed
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter
• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 c. shredded fontina cheese (we also find that smoked gouda and aged cheddar are delicious)
• 3/4 c. shredded Parmesan-like cheese, divided (swap in Asiago or Romano with no ill effects)
• 1/4 c. pesto
• salt + pepper to taste

Toasted Panko Topping

• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1/4 c. panko, toasted

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook macaroni according to package directions until al dente. Two minutes before cook time ends, add broccoli. When macaroni is done, drain immediately and set aside.

2. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add in flour and whisk into butter; continue to heat until mixture is golden brown, 3-5 minutes.

3. Slowly add milk to flour mixture, whisking constantly. Once sauce is smooth, cook until slightly thickened (about 3 minutes) continuing to whisk constantly.

4. Remove sauce from heat. Whisk in cheeses, pesto, and salt and pepper. Fold in pasta and broccoli. Divide into bowls and top with toasted panko, if desired.

5. Heat olive oil in small skillet over medium heat. Add panko and cook until golden brown, 3-5 minutes.

6. To make this Pesto Mac into a freezable casserole, Kiersten at Oh My Veggies recommends first using a thinner sauce - don't allow the roux to thicken up as much as you would for stove top. As soon as it coats the back of your spoon, add the cheese and pesto and whisk together. Incorporate pasta and broccoli into the cheese sauce, then transfer Pesto Mac to a casserole dish. Top with panko and additional shredded cheese, cover tightly (with plastic wrap or airtight lid) and freeze. To reheat, remove from freezer, take off plastic wrap, and cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes; remove foil and bake 15-20 minutes more or until heated through. You can broil for about 5 minutes to brown the breadcrumbs on top.

Though we've never been disappointed with this, we like it best with smoked gouda, which we used once because we had it, and which really elevated the whole dish from your standard mac n' cheese. Now it's our go-to. But really, any cheese will do. If you make this, let us know how it turns out! Especially if you customize to veganize or remove the gluten or whatnot.

As always, thanks for reading and have a great day!