Skip to main content

The BEST Homemade Baked Mac and Cheese




Ingredients
  • 16 oz elbow macaroni, cooked (or other tubular pasta)
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 6 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup all purpose flour
  • 3 cups whole milk
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 4 cups sharp cheddar cheese shredded
  • 2 cups Gruyere cheese shredded
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 1/2 cups panko crumbs
  • 4 tbsp butter melted
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese shredded
  • 1/4 tsp smoked paprika (or regular paprika)

Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a large 3 qt or 4 qt baking dish and set aside.Combine shredded cheeses in a large bowl and set aside.
  2. Cook the pasta one minute shy of al dente according to the package instructions. Remove from heat, drain, and place in a large bowl.
  3. Drizzle pasta with olive oil and stir to coat pasta. Set aside to cool while preparing cheese sauce.
  4. Melt butter in a deep saucepan, dutch oven, or stock pot.
  5. Whisk in flour over medium heat and continue whisking for about 1 minute until bubbly and golden.
  6. Gradually whisk in the milk and heavy cream until nice and smooth. Continue whisking until you see bubbles on the surface and then continue cooking and whisking for another 2 minutes. Whisk in salt and pepper.
  7. Add two cups of shredded cheese and whisk until smooth. Add another two cups of shredded cheese and continue whisking until creamy and smooth. Sauce should be nice and thick.
  8. Stir in the cooled pasta until combined and pasta is fully coated with the cheese sauce.
  9. Pour half of the mac and cheese into the prepared baking dish. Top with remaining 2 cups of shredded cheese and then the remaining mac and cheese.
  10. In a small bowl, combine panko crumbs, Parmesan cheese, melted butter and paprika. Sprinkle over the top and bake until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.


Base Recipe adapted from this SITE

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala

Ingredients 6 (1.5 pounds, total) boneless, skinless chicken breasts 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon dried basil 1 teaspoon dried thyme 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste 1 tablespoon olive oil 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 cup dry marsala wine 1/2 cup water 1/4 cup cornstarch 1/4 cup heavy cream chopped fresh parsley, for garnish Instructions Lightly grease a 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray and set aside. Season chicken breasts all around with garlic powder, dried basil, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add prepared chicken breasts to the hot oil and cook for 3 minutes per side, or until just browned. Transfer chicken to slow cooker and top with mushrooms and garlic. Return skillet over medium-high heat and add the marsala wine; cook for 1 minute, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Pour wine over chicken and mush...

BLUEBERRY�LEMON CURD TART

INGREDIENTS � cup lemon zest plus � cup juice (4 lemons) 1 large egg plus 5 large yolks ? cup plus � cup honey Salt 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces and chilled 2 tablespoons heavy cream 1 recipe Classic Tart Crust (see below) partially baked and cooled 10 ounces (2 cups) blueberries 2 tablespoons cornstarch 2 tablespoons water INSTRUCTIONS Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Measure out 1 tablespoon lemon juice and set aside. Whisk remaining lemon juice, lemon zest, egg and yolks, ? cup honey, and pinch salt in medium saucepan until smooth. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with rubber spatula, until mixture thickens slightly and registers 165 degrees, about 5 minutes. Off heat, whisk in chilled butter until melted. Strain lemon curd through fine-mesh strainer into bowl, then gently stir in cream with rubber spatula. Pour warm lemon curd into cooled tart crust. Set tart on baking sheet and bak...

Easy Healthy Chicken Broccoli Soup

Ingredients 1 large onion finely chopped 2 large carrots peeled and finely chopped 2 celery ribs finely chopped 4 garlic cloves crushed 1 bay leaf 1 tbsp dried mixed herbs 1 tsp chilli flakes/red pepper flakes (optional) 5 cups broccoli stems removed and finely chopped 6 cups chicken stock/broth (Home-made or good quality store bought ) 2 cups milk 2 tbsp cornflour/cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp water 2 cups shredded chicken (I used rotisserie chicken) salt and pepper to taste lemon juice to taste Instructions Saut� the onion, celery, carrot and broccoli stalks in a splash of oil until soft and fragrant and just starting to brown (this takes around 10 minutes). Add the garlic, bay leaf and herbs and saut� for another minute before adding the chicken stock, milk and cornflour mixture. Bring to a simmer then add the broccoli florets and shredded chicken. Allow to cook for 15 minutes then season with salt, pepper and lemon (optional). Serve with crusty bread. Nutrition Calories: 197kcal...