Macaroni and Cheese
This Macaroni and Cheese is simple, cheesy, and has so few ingredients you can memorize it. Nothing fancy like a breadcrumb topping or crazy herbs in this version which means the kids will love it! A side dish that everyone is excited about.
Ingredients
- 1 lb cavatappi pasta, elbow pasta, or any short pasta
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 cups freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
Equipment
cheese grater (This one makes it so easy!)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 ℉ and grease a 9x13 baking dish.
- In a large pot filled with water, add 1 tablespoon of salt. Bring water to boiling and add your pasta. Cook according to package directions al dente. Drain and return to the pot.
- While pasta is cooking prepare the sauce. In a large sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for one minute. Slowly whisk in the milk one cup at a time followed with the cream. Simmer over medium high for a few minutes until mixture thickens. Add about 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. This is important otherwise your mac and cheese will be bland.
- Remove from the heat and stir in 2 cups of the cheese until melted. Quickly stir the cheese sauce into the cooked and drained pasta.
- Pour half of the sauce coated pasta into the prepared dish. Layer 2 cups of the cheese on top. Add the remaining pasta on top in an even layer. Sprinkle the remaining 2 cups of cheese on top.
- Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve immediately.
Notes
TIPS TO MAKING THIS SUCCESSFULLY
- Don't overcook your pasta. The pasta is cooked al dente and THEN cooked in a sauce in the oven so you don't want soggy pasta.
- Salting sufficiently. There's a huge difference between a properly salted macaroni and cheese and one that isn't. If you feel like it's missing something, it's usually salt.
- There are only 6 ingredients in this mac and cheese so using SHARP cheddar is essential in giving it that cheese taste. A milder medium cheddar will taste just that. Mild.
- It helps if your cheese is not super cold. I leave my freshly shredded cheese on the counter while I cook the pasta.