Cougar Gold mac and cheese

Ingredients

Pasta

• 2 lb elbow macaroni or cavatappi
• 2 tbsp kosher salt, for the pasta water

Sauce

• 8 tbsp (1 stick) butter
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 6 cups whole milk, warmed, plus 1 cup more for the lot
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1 can (30 oz) Cougar Gold cheese, shredded
• 2 tsp dry mustard
• 1½ tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper

Topping

• 1½ cups panko
• 3 tbsp butter, melted
• 2 tbsp chopped chives (optional)

Steps

At home

1. Open the Cougar Gold can at both ends and push the cheese out. Shred all of it on the large holes of a box grater. Shredded cheese melts smoothly; cubes turn grainy.
2. Boil the pasta in a big pot of well-salted water for 2 minutes less than the package says. Drain it and toss it with a splash of oil so it doesn't stick.
3. Melt the butter in the heavy pot over medium. Whisk in the flour and cook for 2 minutes, whisking, without letting it brown. Pour in the warm milk a cup at a time, whisking after each one, then simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce coats a spoon.
4. Take the pot off the heat. Whisk in the cream cheese, dry mustard, salt, black pepper and cayenne. Stir in the Cougar Gold a handful at a time, letting each one melt before the next.
5. Fold in the pasta and split it between the 2 foil pans. Toss the panko with the melted butter and toast it in a dry skillet over medium, stirring, until golden, about 4 minutes. Let it cool and bag it. It goes on at the lot so it stays crunchy.
6. Pick a plan. Leaving soon (eat within 2 hours): bake the pans covered at 375°F for 20 minutes, then uncovered for 10 more, until bubbling. Put the lids on, wrap the pans in towels and set them in an empty cooler. Night before: cool the unbaked pans for 30 minutes, lid them and refrigerate. They ride to the lot in the cooler at 40°F or below.

At the lot

7. Light the propane grill and set one side to medium-low with the other side off, for about 325°F with the lid closed. Set the covered pans on the off side.
8. If the pans came cold, heat them covered for 35 to 45 minutes, stirring in ½ cup of milk per pan halfway through, until the center reads 165°F. If they came hot from home, a covered 10 minutes on the grill is enough to bring them back up.
9. Scatter the panko and chives over the top and serve from the pan. Leave the pans on the off side over the low burner so they stay at 140°F or above while people come back for seconds.