Baked Macaroni and Cheese, minus the macaroni

My friends assure me that any pasta with cheese sauce can qualify to be labelled as "mac and cheese", even if you don't use the macaroni "elbow" shaped pasta. Fusilli has all these curves and holds sauces really well, which is why I stock it in the pantry. Anyhow. Be it fusilli, celantini, macaroni, or shells, it should all be equivalent in how much you cook for one 9" x 13" batch. I wouldn't advise using bowties or large pasta shapes to make mac and cheese.

Smoked Cheese and Pasta

I added diced green chiles to the cheese sauce to enhance the flavor; and while I only added two tablespoons, I think I should have added the entire 4 oz can. Compared to the smoky mac 'n' cheese that I had from Vancouver's food cart Esoteric BBQ, my version pales in comparison. There's no beating the smokiness of a real wood-fired smoker; plus Esoteric's might just have more salt in theirs.

This batch used 8 oz Gouda, 8 oz medium cheddar, and 4 oz Parmesan.

At any rate, here's the recipe I used. It makes roughly 9 servings.