stove-top macaroni and cheese

I have a few "go-to" chefs that I can always depend on for making great recipes that my family will love. Alton Brown, Ree Drummond (Pioneer Woman), and Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa).  I decided to try a stove-top recipe for mac&cheese recently, because honestly, I haven't found the baked mac&cheese of my dreams just yet. Some good ones, but not perfect ones.

Alton has this one on his website, and I tried it the other day. WOW. For a quick recipe, it's really good. And I like that it has no flour in it for thickening. Instead, it uses eggs.

I made the changes that I typically do these days, because we are using whole grain pastas and lower fat dairy products. But other than that, I didn't change anything except to cut the amount of butter in half.

My kids love macaroni and cheese, and will never fail to tell me if they don't like a recipe I've tried. This one gets thumbs up from all three, and me as well.

Stove-top Macaroni and Cheese

1/2 pound whole wheat elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
6 ounces evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon salt (next time I will add 3/4 teaspoon instead)
freshly cracked black pepper to taste
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
10 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese

In a large pot of boiling water, cook the pasta to al dente and drain.  Put back in the pot with the butter and toss to coat as it melts.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard.  Carefully whisk in the milk.  Stir this mixture into the pasta and then add the grated cheese.  Over medium low heat, cook for 5-8 minutes, stirring constantly, until creamy. Remove pot from heat and let sit for 3 minutes before serving.