Recipe By: Barefoot Contessa/Heavily Adapted by Winner Dinners
Serves about 6

1-1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs made from French bread
vegetable oil
3/4 pound large elbow macaroni
12 ounces (3/4 pound) Gruyere cheese, grated (4 cups)
8 ounces (1/2 pound) extra-sharp Cheddar cheese, grated (2 cups)
4 cups milk
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, divided
1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Prepare the bread crumbs by placing chunks of French bread in a blender and processing until the crumbs are fine.  Set aside.  Preheat the oven to 375.  Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling water.  Add the macaroni and cook for about 7 minutes.  Drain well.  Meanwhile, grate the cheeses and set aside.

Heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don’t boil it.  Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in a large pot and add the flour.  Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk.  While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth.  While cooking, add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg.  Turn off the heat and add the Gruyere and Cheddar.  Add the cooked macaroni and stir well.  Pour into a 9×13 baking dish.  Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and combine with the fresh bread crumbs.  Sprinkle on top of the macaroni.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the bread crumbs are lightly browned.