@cookinwithcongress: James Hemings was Thomas Jefferson’s enslaved chef, and he trained in France professionally, bringing back numerous French techniques that Thomas Jefferson loved, big Francophile that he was. Meringues, macarons, and of course…Mac and cheese. It’s almost odd to think of it as a French invention because of how synonymous it is with America, especially southern, Black America. This is a 200-year old recipe, modernized for language purposes, but really…I stuck to it. Full disclosure, I tried making this one night, and messed up, using AP flour instead of 00. Then something else went wrong and I couldn’t tell exactly what — too tacky, the dough. Finally, I got it to the right consistency (I think letting it rest, which was NOT part of the recipe) and was able to roll the 3rd worst macaronis you’ve ever seen. Was it all worth it? Ehhhh. I dunno. I have a damn good Mac and cheese recipe that isn’t from the 18th century — still historically accurate — that I’ll share one day, and that’s the one I’ll go back to. Still, nothing bad about this one from James Hemings. #recipesoftiktok #LearnOnTikTok #HistoryTime #USHistory

cessinger :

James Hemmings was THE founding father of American cuisine. This is just one of his many contributions to our food culture.

Toli645 :

Watched a doc on Jefferson and he brought a vanilla bean back from Europe and it was used to make ice cream for his grandchildren and they loved it because the ice cream flavor of the time was OYSTER 😭😭😭🤢

Sarah-Paige :

It’s giving tasting history

salty_vixen :

I'll take a plate. please.

Marianne Marston :

That might be the most delicious looking thing you’ve ever eaten on this channel!

Keon Andrade :

Wasn’t Hemmings also his son?

🩵🐮Salem🐮🩵 :

Bless him for doing so because it is my lifelong comfort food. 🥰

meowwwrp :

is that why in the yankee doodle song they say “…stuck a feather in his cap and called it macaroni” ?!

Brian Villescaz :

ngl id eat 3 pounds of that😝

Holly Charman :

Didn’t have enough aspic for the guests liking

Blackbird Vortex :

the origins of greatness

Alicia Trautwein :

That was some impressive pasta making!

giulia.g :

This is very similar to the original fettuccine alfredo, which is essentially pasta tossed in butter and parmigiano reggiano or pecorino, that’s it.

Long John :

I was just watching the Jefferson series on Netflix and learned how he had his enslaved cooks trained on French cuisine. I didn’t realize they helped bring Mac and Cheese to the US. Thanks for the history lesson

SoSaysCat :

Don’t tell Kraft

CrazyCemeteryLady :

Still loooks amazing!

Alabama Fairchild :

They were like WHERE'S THE JELLY. Why is it in contact with the air and not ENTOMBED IN JELLY

Denise Arneson :

I just came back from Italy where I had a version of mac & cheese, which was homemade fettuccine and pico Romano cheese with pepper. It was to die for that and the carbonara in Rome.

havehillwilltravel :

I’d also like to add that James would have been Jefferson’s own brother in law twice over as James, Martha Jefferson AND Sally Hemings all had the same father

Katie McGhee :

There’s a chef named Walter Staib who specializes in colonial and early American cuisine. He used to run City Tavern in Philadelphia and has a tv show on PBS called A Taste of History. He is OBSESSED with Thomas Jefferson and James Hemmings, and recreates so many of his recipes. I have his cookbook and I’m gonna be honest, his recipes are hands down my favorite recipes to make.

BeardedUhl82 :

Fantastic looking Mac

drewkazinsky :

Dawn :

so weird I'm making mac n cheese right now for the first time in a decade 😳

Tabitha Catt Books 📚 ᛑᛗᛛ ✍️ :

Why was I thinking mac n cheese was German?

Rebekah Weatherspoon :

The recipe is straight up milk and cheese. It’s so much cheese.