Mac 'n Cheese

Family dinners when I was growing up were a huge production. Gran-gran is one of eight brothers and sisters, so it was always a packed house, no matters whose house we were dining at. With so many people to feed, we always filled the table potluck style. And the feast was never complete until my Great Aunt Dot placed her homemade macaroni and cheese in amongst the other great dishes.

It was a simple dish, but incredibly delicious. Nothing from a box could ever come close. She didn't have a written recipe for it, it was just something she threw together. It was unspoken, but I believe she understood that she would not be allowed to dine with us without bringing it.

Cole and I have recently discovered the mac 'n cheese at the Galaxy Cafe. It reminds me just a little of Dot's homemade version: fresh gooey cheese; big, perfectly cooked noodles; warm, not too hot to eat. Comforting somehow.

Dot passed away in a house fire a couple of years ago. But before she did, Mom took the time to go to her house and talk mac 'n cheese with her. We have her recipe written down now, and out of the ashes of her house, we were able to salvage the oversized floral pot with the brown lid that she always had in hand when she walked in the front door for a family meal.

I've yet to try her recipe. But until I perfect it the way she did, I'm glad Galaxy Cafe is just down the street.