If Martha's joining the party, she better step it up a notch.....

So, I started planning my menu for the week on Sunday afternoon. I really wasn't feeling all that well, but had to do it. I flipped and flipped through the cookbooks for a Macaroni & Cheese recipe. I planned on Salmon Patties, Southern Style Greens, Macaroni & Cheese and Deviled Eggs for dinner one night this week.
Scratch that- in lieu of the the greens we had Artichokes with Hollandaise Sauce from MtAoFC. I picked a Mac & Cheese from ole' Martha's cookbook (pg. 227)that had crusty bread torn apart on top, cherry tomatoes and white cheddar cheese. Sounded good and not complicated. Okay, so I made it per the directions with SIX dollars worth of Wisconsin White Cheddar Cheese, one pound of cherry tomatoes, the quart of milk and other ingredients it called for.
Let's just say after enjoying the Hollandaise Sauce (pg. 81) poured over my Salmon Patties and dipping my artichoke petals into, Martha now has her head on the chopping block. She needs to redeem herself and do it quickly. The macaroni was okay, it was missing something. I loved the crusty bread topping and the cherry tomatoes in it, but not loving the flavor of the cheese sauce. It could have been the white cheddar, but not 100% sure on that. Next time I make macaroni and cheese, I'll incorporate the tomatoes and the crusty bread topping into another recipe. The artichokes were good, but A LOT of work for so little. I made them according to the basic directions on page 424. I liked the petals better than the heart, however, this might be a different story when I have a better variety to choose from later this spring.
Back to the YUMMY Hollandaise Sauce-I cheated and did the directions for the blender. It was so easy to make, MtAoFC says that an 8 year old can do it and I agree. Who knew that a stick of butter, a little salt & pepper, lemon juice and egg yolks would be so heavenly? YUM! And to believe that McCormick sells a powder to make the same thing and it probably tastes like dirt compared to what I made. After all, it's all butter!