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Greek Macaroni and Cheese with Roasted Garlic and Caramelized Leeks

Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours 10 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 35 minutes
Author Eva Kosmas Flores

Ingredients

Greek Macaroni & Cheese

  • 1 Head Garlic
  • 1 Leek thinly sliced
  • 1/2 of a Sweet Onion chopped
  • 16 Ounces Dry Rigatoni Pasta
  • 11 Ounces Feta Cheese buy it packaged in brine, feta cheese that has been pre-crumbled is very dry and not as tasty
  • 1 Cup Asiago Cheese shredded
  • 1 Cup Fresh Baby Spinach chopped
  • 2/3 Cup Milk
  • 1/2 Cup Sun Dried Tomatoes chopped
  • 1/3 Cup Heavy Cream
  • 3 Tablespoons Butter
  • 1 Tablespoon Plus 3 Teaspoons Olive Oil
  • 1 Teaspoon Flour
  • 1 Teaspoon Oregano
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Rosemary
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper

Greek Coffee

  • 2/3 Cup Water
  • 2 Heaping Teaspoons Greek Coffee
  • 2 Teaspoons Sugar
  • Pinch of Cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter and a teaspoon of the olive oil in a large saucepan until the butter melts. Add the onions and the leeks and stir so that they're coated in the oil butter mixture. Lower the heat to the lowest setting and allow to cook for one hour, stirring every ten minutes, until it is golden brown in color. Then remove it from the heat and set aside.
  2. Cut the top 1/4 off of the head of garlic. Drizzle the other teaspoon of olive oil over the top of the garlic and then wrap it in tin foil and roast it in the oven for 30 minutes. Then remove it, and allow it to cool before squeezing the garlic out of the peel. Preheat the oven to the lowest broil setting. Cook the rigatoni according the the package's directions. When you strain it once it's done cooking, drizzle some olive oil over it and shake it a bit to help keep the noodles from getting stuck to each other.
  3. Heat a tablespoon of the olive oil in a small frying pan and saute the spinach until it is wilted. Remove and set aside.
  4. Heat the remaining tablespoon of butter in a medium-sized saucepan over low heat until melted. Whisk in the flour until fully incorporated. Add the milk and cream and continue to heat until hot, but not boiling. Add the oregano and rosemary and mix well, then add the asiago cheese, crumble the feta into the pot, and stir until the feta is just beginning to melt.
  5. Remove the pan from the heat and combine the cheese mixture with the rigatoni, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, onions, leeks, and roast garlic in a 13 x 9 inch casserole dish. Sprinkle the black pepper over the top of the macaroni and cheese and then put it in the oven and broil it for 5 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned on the tips of the rigatoni. Remove and serve.
  6. To make the Greek coffee, heat the water, sugar, and coffee grinds over high heat in a Greek coffee pot. The coffee will simmer and then will begin to boil rapidly and rise in the pot as if it is going to boil over. It is right at this point that you should remove it from the heat, sprinkle in the cinnamon, and serve it.