Easy Cheesy Mac and Ham

Ingredients

• Serves 6
• 1 pound elbow pasta, cooked and drained
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 8 ounces ham, diced

Creamy Sauce

• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 4 cups milk
• 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups shredded white cheddar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Lightly butter a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. To cook pasta, fill a large pot 2/3 of the way with hot tap water.
4. Add 1 teaspoon salt to the water. Bring to a boil over high heat.
5. Add the pasta and stir with a wooden spoon to be sure noodles don�t stick to the bottom of the pot. Turn the heat down, enough to maintain a boil and stir every so often to prevent noodles sticking. Do not cover the pot.
6. After 8-10 minutes, take a piece of pasta out of the water, allow it to cool and do a test for doneness.
7. Bite into the pasta. If it is too hard to bite or you see a white center, it needs to cook a little longer.
8. When it cooks all the way through it is ready and cooked el dente.
9. Turn off the heat, put the pasta into a strainer. Shake out excess water and put the pot back onto a cool part of the stove.
10. Cut the ham into small chunks.
11. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet on medium high heat.
12. Add the ham and cook for a few minutes until nicely browned. Shut off and set aside.
13. Melt butter in a large, heavy pot over medium heat.
14. Whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute.
15. Pour in the milk in a slow, steady stream.
16. As you add, keep whisking to keep from forming lumps.
17. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until mixture is thick and bubbly stirring frequently.
18. Season with salt, and pepper.
19. Place all but 3/4 cup of the cheeses into the sauce and stir until melted.
20. Remove from heat and stir in cooked pasta and ham.
21. Transfer to the prepared baking dish, top with the remaining 3/4 cup of cheese and cover with aluminum foil.
22. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes.
23. Remove and serve nice and hot.