vegetarian

Why did you choose this over regular elbow mac

More surface area for the sauce to cover. Also, the larger pieces make it easier to get a good ratio of mushroom-to-pasta on every fork.

is it fair and appropriate to call it "mac" and cheese

It says "enriched macaroni product" on the box. Macaroni is any narrow tubular pasta made from durum wheat, including penne, elbows, and other shapes.

and what is your recipe?

I'm still working out the kinks in the recipe, and I did not measure anything at all, so I'll type up a proper recipe next time. Basically it goes like this:

1. Sautée the mushrooms and spinach in oil with a little salt, pepper, garlic powder.

2. Add a couple tablespoons of flour to the veggies and oil, make a roux.

3. Add a few cups of milk slowly and gradually, make a white sauce.

4. Add a ton of shredded cheddar and Muenster cheese, keep stirring until it's all smooth and creamy. Then add the boiled pasta and mix it together.

5. Bake it in the oven. 400°-ish for 15-ish minutes? I neglected this step but it turns out it's important because otherwise the cheese sauce doesn't set right and you end up with globs of cheese separating back out of the sauce.

It looks delicious.

Thank you! 🥰