Best Baked Macaroni and Cheese {New and Improved}

This greatest baked macaroni and cheese recipe is the creamiest, cheesiest, do-it-yourself mac and cheese ever. No processed cheese! It is so good!

Having a go-to recipe for baked macaroni and cheese is the final word in culinary rock star standing. This is the one!

Homemade From-Scratch Cheese Sauce

Like any good macaroni and cheese recipe, this one begins with a do-it-yourself white sauce.

A easy roux (flour + butter) types the thickening basis of the sauce.

Off the warmth, add sharp cheddar and gruyere cheeses a bit of at a time to the white sauce for the proper creamy, tacky sauce. Some of the cheese is reserved for meeting (vital!), so learn the recipe totally to know the way a lot so as to add to the sauce.

Elbow Macaroni + Cheese Sauce

Cook elbow macaroni till al dente (it can cook dinner a bit extra within the oven, so don’t overcook it within the boiling water) and then stir the macaroni and cheese sauce collectively. It will likely be superb.

No judging if at this level you wish to simply dig proper in. No judging in any respect.

In truth, in case you stir the macaroni and cheese collectively in the identical pot the sauce was made in, you may pop it again on the range over medium-low warmth, and cook dinner it for a pair minutes to warmth by means of and serve out of the pot identical to this for an ultra-creamy, non-baked model! (Per the recipe, you’ll have some cheese leftover, however you may serve it atop particular person servings.)

Assembling Baked Macaroni and Cheese

To obtain final cheesiness in a do-it-yourself baked macaroni and cheese recipe, reserve among the shredded cheese and layer it between the creamy, tacky, coated macaroni noodles.

It makes all of the distinction! And it means you’ll get a few of these superb cheese pull strands when dishing up the macaroni and cheese. I imply, what else is there to reside for aside from that??

Classic baked macaroni and cheese is often topped with a bread crumb topping.

For this recipe, you should use do-it-yourself bread crumbs or Panko bread crumbs. In my recipe testing, I discovered that storebought bread crumbs don’t work fairly as effectively (they’re a bit too sandy in texture).

The punchy Parmesan flavors and buttery crumbs on this topping are superb with the creamy baked macaroni and cheese!

FYI: The topping could be left off, if desired. You’ll be lacking a little bit of crunch and salty taste, but it surely’s nonetheless an honorable alternative. If doing so, the highest “crust” of the macaroni and cheese will bubble and develop golden spots whereas baking. Just watch intently and reasonable oven temp as wanted.

Homemade mac and cheese has dissatisfied me many instances prior to now. Grainy, missing in taste, not almost tacky sufficient.

This model has modified all of that! It is my favourite do-it-yourself baked macaroni and cheese up to now! I took it to quite a few events/potlucks over the vacations, and it was devoured each single time (with numerous requests for the recipe).

If you’re questioning how this compares to a really outdated traditional macaroni and cheese recipe on my web site, this recipe comes with a extra streamlined prep and meeting strategy, in addition to a reinvented cheese sauce that’s creamier and cheesier.

If you’ve at all times needed to make the most effective macaroni and cheese at dwelling, this recipe can get you there!

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The Best Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Prep Time: 45 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hr 5 minutes minutes

• 1 pound (454 g) elbow macaroni
• 6 tablespoons (85 g) butter
• 6 tablespoons (53 g) all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon dried mustard (non-obligatory)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 ½ cups entire milk
• 16 ounces (454 g) freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese (see word!), about 4 cups
• 6 ounces (170 g) freshly shredded grueyere or Monterey Jack cheese (see word!), about 1 1/2 cups
• 1 cup (60 g) bread crumbs or Panko crumbs
• 4 tablespoons (57 g) melted butter
• ¼ cup (28 g) freshly finely grated Parmesan cheese

• Preheat oven to 350 levels F.

• Cook the pasta in calmly salted water (vital!) till al dente in line with bundle instructions. Drain and put aside (tossing a couple of times to forestall clumping).

• In the identical pot (no want to scrub, simply wipe dry), soften the butter over medium warmth. Add the flour, mustard (if utilizing) and salt, and whisk to mix. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, whisking continuously.

• Gradually add the milk about one cup at a time, whisking to totally mix earlier than including extra. Bring to a simmer, whisking continuously, and cook dinner for 3 to 4 minutes till the sauce has thickened to the consistency of thick cream.

• Off the warmth, including one handful at a time, whisk in 3 cups of the cheddar cheese and 1 cup of the gruyere cheese, mixing till the cheeses are absolutely melted and the sauce is creamy. (Reserve the remaining 1 1/2 cups of cheese for assembling within the baking dish.)

• Add the cooked macaroni noodles to the cheese sauce and gently combine till totally and evenly mixed.

• To assemble, unfold half of the macaroni and cheese in a 9X13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining cheese. Spread the remainder of the macaroni evenly excessive.

• In a small bowl, toss the bread crumbs and butter collectively till evenly combined. Stir within the Parmesan cheese.

• Sprinkle the topping evenly over the macaroni. Bake within the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes till the topping is golden and the macaroni and cheese is sizzling and effervescent. Serve instantly.

Cheese: for the creamiest macaroni and cheese, use freshly grated cheese (as an alternative of utilizing pre-grated cheese that’s coated with a powdery substance to forestall it from clumping – this additionally prevents it from melting in addition to freshly grated cheese). 
Make-ahead: to make this macaroni and cheese forward of time, assemble the macaroni and cheese within the baking dish per the recipe directions. Instead of including the topping, place the topping in a bag and refrigerate. Cover the baking dish and refrigerate the macaroni and cheese. It could be refrigerated for as much as 12 hours. Sprinkle with topping proper earlier than baking. You might have so as to add 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time if baking straight from the fridge. I’ve not tried freezing this macaroni and cheese. 

Serving: 1 serving, Calories: 640kcal, Carbohydrates: 48g, Protein: 27g, Fat: 37g, Saturated Fat: 22g, Cholesterol: 109mg, Sodium: 869mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 7g

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