This Is The Secret Key To Disney's Mac And Cheese

While nothing about either Disney World or macaroni and cheese immediately brings to mind the concept of gourmet eating, nevertheless there is an association between the two. According to the Touring Plans, every year since 1996, Epcot has hosted the International Food & Wine Festival. While the festival has featured such exotic offerings as Brazilian crispy pork belly with black beans, tomato, and cilantro; Patagonian roasted Verlasso salmon with quinoa salad and arugula chimichurri; and Puerto Rican conch salad with onion, tomato, and cilantro, one of its biggest hits, year after year, is the fussy eater's favorite: good old mac and cheese (via Orlando Sentinel).

Still, not just any old boxed stuff will do for Disney's foodie festival. The Disney Parks Blog recently released their recipe, and the full name of the dish reveals the ingredients that make it so special. This isn't any ordinary mac and cheese, no, it's actually "Gourmet Macaroni and Cheese with Boursin Garlic & Fine Herbs Cheese topped with Herbed Panko."

Whew, that recipe name is a mouthful, isn't it? And yet, quite a tasty one, and it's not quite as complicated to make as its name would imply. According to the Disney Parks recipe, you'll first need to toast half a cup of panko breadcrumbs in 4 tablespoons of melted butter, then season them with coarse salt and set them aside. Boil up a pound of cavatappi or elbow macaroni, drain, and set that aside, too.

For the sauce, melt 3/4 cup butter and whisk in 3/4 flour to make a roux. Add 8 cups of milk, 1-1/2 teaspoons each of garlic and onion powder, and a teaspoon of mustard powder, bring to a boil, then let simmer for a few minutes till thickened. (Keep stirring so it doesn't stick or burn; milk can be tricky to cook.) Fold in half a pound each of shredded white and yellow cheddars and two 5.2 ounce wheels of Boursin cheese with garlic & fine herbs. Use an immersion blender if you've got one to make sure all the cheese melts into a smooth sauce, otherwise keep stirring like mad. Add the pasta, season with salt and pepper, then serve the dish, which serves 6 to 8 people, topped with toasted crumbs and additional Boursin cheese (sliced or crumbled).

Pretty fancy House of Mouse! This is a dish that successfully spans the gap between comfort and gastronomy, appealing to Mouseketeers and epicureans alike.