In honor of the holiday season, here are a couple delicious recipes of items available on the menu at our local Morton’s The Steakhouse. The following Macaroni and Cheese recipe, from Morton’s The Cookbook and Mashed Potatoes from the original Morton’s Steak Bible cookbook. Enjoy them at Morton’s or cook them at home!

Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 6 to 8
12 ounces dried cavatappi or other small hollow, ridged pasta
1 ½ teaspoons melted butter
4 tablespoons finely diced yellow onion
1 ¼ cups heavy cream
Kosher salt
6 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
4 ounces cream cheese, cut into small cubes
3 ounces parmesan cheese, grated (about 2/3 cup)
1 ounce Swiss cheese, grated (about 6 tablespoons)
½ tablespoon chile paste, such as sambal oelek
5 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely shredded (about 1 2/3 cups)
8 tablespoons Panko bread crumbs (about ½ cup)
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Drain but leave a little water on the pasta to keep it moist. Reserve another ½ cup of pasta water to thin the sauce. Return to the cooking pot and cover to keep warm.
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the onions for about 1 minute or until tender. Add the cream and bring to a simmer. Stir in the cheddar, cream, parmesan and Swiss cheeses and cook, stirring, until the cheeses melt and are fully incorporated into the cream. Let the sauce reach a simmer and stir in the chile paste. You will have about 2 ½ cups of sauce.
Remove from the heat and using an immersion blender or hand-held electric mixer, beat for about 45 seconds until the cheeses and onions are completely blended. The sauce will be thick; thin it with the reserved ½ cup of pasta water and mix well. Season to taste with salt.
Ladle the sauce over the pasta and mix well with a rubber spatula. Transfer to a deep, 2-quart baking dish and spread the pasta and cheese evenly. Sprinkle the coarsely shredded cheese over the casserole and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until hot and bubbling around the edges. Serve immediately.
Mashed Potatoes
These are so good because they are so easy to make. Potatoes, butter, heavy cream, sour cream, and salt and pepper. What can go wrong? For garlic mashed potatoes, use garlic butter in place of regular butter.

5 pounds russet or all-purpose potatoes, peeled
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
Cut the potatoes into approximate 1½-inch cubes and transfer to a large pot. Add enough cold water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender. Be careful not to overcook. Immediately drain in a colander.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine the butter and cream over a medium heat, and cook until the butter melts. Do not boil. Set aside.
Transfer the drained potatoes to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the potatoes start to break up and blend together. You may have to do this in batches. Gradually add the sour cream and mix until combined. Season with salt and pepper. (Alternatively, mash the potatoes by hand with a potato masher.)
With the mixer still on low speed, slowly add the hot cream-butter mixture. When all is added, increase the speed to medium and mix for 30 to 40 seconds, or until thoroughly mixed. Add more warm cream if necessary for the correct consistency. The potatoes should not be completely smooth.

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