Mac daddy

#165 – Page 195
Easiness: 4
Tastiness: 3

I had such high hopes for this dish. Come to think of it, I always seem to have high hopes for homemade mac and cheese (vegan or not) and it always turns out bland. I’m guessing it’s because I have an aversion to added salt. I almost always use less salt in the recipes I cook. Salt is something you just get so used to, and it isn’t like it’s good for you. When you start using more… you just want more. 99% of the time you can’t tell the difference (at least if you aren’t already addicted to it) but I think mac and cheese is one of those recipes where additional salt is required. And so I failed yet again.

Mac and cheese - 1

Oh well, it wasn’t too bad. And Joey loved it (as usual, I’m so lucky to have such an easy to satisfy dinner partner!) I added peas and leeks to incorporate at least some vegetables. Usually I throw in a bunch of red peppers and tomatoes too, but it isn’t quite that season yet.

This is pretty easy to make, although the recipe has very weird and complicated instructions for mixing everything together. Next time I would just dump the sauce, tofu, and veggies all on top of the noodles directly. Then mix, and pour into the pan. And don’t forget to add more salt…

Mac and cheese - 2

20 May written by
  • Robin Mahon

    Love the pictures. I must say dinner didn’t look too inviting!
    Thanks for sharing.
    Robin and Robert

  • Ann Carranza

    Nice photos, Joey! I particularly liked your furry friend, however, there are a lot of really nice photos here. Well, I’m off to check out flickr…

  • Carolyn, RN

    Joey, I’m a friend of your mom’s. Your photos are very well done and professional. I am always in awe.
    Group or covey for the grouse: http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Pointless/AnimalGroups.html

    Nice to see brothers enjoying each others company.

  • http://guyslikedolls.com jcdoll

    Glad you liked them. Thanks for the tip!

  • Liz Martin

    Hi Joey,
    Loved the photos- my husband and I love to backpack and so appreciated your trip.
    p.s. I am Mary’ Friend,
    Liz

  • andrea

    What did you think of Milbank, South Dakota, and how did you pass through there?

  • http://guyslikedolls.com jcdoll

    That was a different trip, we drove out there from California for a wedding. Milbank was very green with a handful of lakes nearby, which was a nice change from the yellow hills around here. We were mainly on the outskirts of town near Big Stone Lake, so can’t comment too much on Milbank itself except for that it’s pretty small and the people are really, really friendly. I posted photos but never got around to writing about it: http://flickr.com/photos/jcdoll/collections/72157606549858136/

  • http://cheapbackpackertravel.com/ Carl

    Nice shots!

    and yeah, dinner looks so dry.. hehe.
    what is that btw?

    For more backpacking stories, you may also visit :
    http://cheapbackpackertravel.com/

  • Joel

    Great report, great pictures. But I really appreciate your handy dandy GPS measurements of distance and altitude. Thanks for the post.

    Joel

  • Cheryl Strieby

    Great shots. am going to pack at mineral king in two weeks. haven’t been backpacking in 12 years, your shots helped me remember it won’t all be sleeping on the rocks.
    thanks.
    ; )

  • Bruno

    Hi Jcdoll. Thanks for the detailed trip report.
    I have a question for you even though i am pretty sure you don’t check this website anymore.
    You say that the total elevation gain was 13600 feet, but looking at your graph it seems like it could be a bit less (i calculated 9200 to 9500ft). Should i rather trust the 13600ft? The reason why i am asking you such a question is that this loop might be our first backpacking trip with our young son (who we will have to carry on our back) and we would like to have a better idea of the difficulty before to decide. Thank you again for the detailed information and sorry for the bizarre question.

  • http://guyslikedolls.com jcdoll

    Hi Bruno -
    Nope, I’m still around :) . The trip was about 10,000 feet up and 10,000 feet down. It’s hard to tell from the graph on this post, but you can look at the detailed GPS data here:

    http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=38208

    I hope this helps.