Preserved Lemon Dill Mac-N-Cheese

This Preserved Lemon Dill Mac-N-Cheese is a Flavor Explosion. Get ready to wow your taste buds with Preserved Lemon Dill Mac-N-Cheese! This ain’t your grandma’s mac-n-cheese. This dish is a tangy, zesty twist on the classic comfort food, perfect for impressing guests at your summer party.

First, let’s talk about the magic ingredient: preserved lemons. Preserved lemons have been a culinary treasure in North African cuisine for centuries. They’re made by packing whole lemons in salt and their juice, then left to ferment for a few weeks. The result? A flavor-packed lemon that’s salty and slightly sweet, with a unique depth that fresh lemons can’t match.

Preserved Lemons are a Cinch to Make:

Want to make your own preserved lemons? It’s easy! Slice the lemons, pack them in salt, and let time do the rest. In a few weeks, you’ll have your stash of this culinary gold.

Now, back to our mac-n-cheese masterpiece. This isn’t just any cheese sauce. We’re talking about a bechamel loaded with a trio of cheeses: mild white cheddar, Monterey Jack, and Dill Havarti. The bechamel is then spiked with a splash of juice from the preserved lemon jar, adding a tangy zing to make your taste buds dance.

We use large corkscrew pasta because it holds onto all that cheesy goodness. Fold in chopped preserved lemon and fresh dill for bursts of flavor in every bite. This mac-n-cheese isn’t just creamy and cheesy; it’s a flavor explosion.

Preserved lemons add a vibrant, tangy punch to the dish. Their unique taste cuts through the richness of the cheese, making each bite bright and addictive. Combined with the fresh dill, they give the mac-n-cheese a refreshing twist that’s perfect for summer.

So, to impress at your next gathering, bring out the big guns with Preserved Lemon Dill Mac-N-Cheese. It’s over-the-top, It’s delicious. And it’s guaranteed to make you the star of the show. Plus, you’ll have a fun talking point about the history and making of preserved lemons. Get ready to watch your guests go back for seconds… and thirds!

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Preserved Lemon Dill Mac-n-Cheese

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword lemon dill mac-n-cheese, lemon pasta, mac and cheese, mac-n-cheese, mac-n-cheese recipe, preserved lemon mac-n-cheese, preserved lemons

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Servings 8

Author Lora Wiley-Lennartz

Ingredients

• 1 pound pasta short shapes
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup flour
• 5 cups whole milk
• 8 oz shredded mild white cheddar
• 8 oz shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
• 8 oz shredded dill Havarti
• 2 tablespoons liquid from the preserved lemons
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper if you have lemon salt, use that
• 1+1/2 Preserved lemons divided & chopped into small pieces.
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

Instructions

1. Boil the pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain and set aside.
2. Mix the shredded cheeses.
3. Heat the butter in a large skillet.
4. Whisk in the flour.
5. Add the flour and whisk for 1 to 2 minutes until the lumps dissolve.
6. Stream in the milk whisking consistently. Whisk until smooth, with no lumps.
7. Reduce heat and simmer until it thickens, stirring frequently.
8. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese until melted.
9. Stir in the preserved lemon juice.
10. Season with salt and pepper to taste
11. Preheat the oven to 400F.
12. Grease a large baking dish.
13. Toss the pasta in the sauce.
14. Mix in the preserved lemon pieces, then the dill
15. Transfer the mixture to the baking dish.
16. Sprinkle the rest of the remaining cheese and then the chopped 1/2 preserved lemon over the top.
17. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden and bubbly on the top.
18. Remove from oven and serve.

Like this Preserved Lemon Dill Mac-N-Cheese? Also, check out some of these other recipes:

PRESERVED LEMON POTATO SALAD

PRESERVED LIME BUTTERMILK POTATOES

RAMP PRESERVED LEMON EGG SALAD