The Serious Business of Mac & Cheese

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Macaroni & Cheese

Prep Time25 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Course: Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Cheesecake, Comfort Food, Mac N Cheese

Servings: 12 servings

Ingredients

• ½ cup prepared bread crumbs
• 4 cups assorted cheeses cheddar, swiss & whatever you like
• 4 cups whole milk
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt
• ½ tsp dry mustard
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• ½ small onion diced
• 4 tbsp flour
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 lb elbow noodles
• 3 cubes sodium free chicken boullion

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a large pot, bring 6-8 quarts of water to a boil. Add 3 sodium-free chicken boullion cubes to the water along with elbow noodles. Cook for 8 minutes. Drain but DO NOT RINSE and return the noodles to the pot.
• Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt 4 Tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add diced onion and sauté until translucent and soft. Add minced garlic and sauté until fragrant.
• Next, add flour and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly and taking care not to burn the roux.
• Slowly begin to whisk in milk, stirring constantly to eliminate any flour lumps. Allow the milk mixture to cook gently for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently so that milk does not scald.
• Once the mixture begins to thicken, add seasoned salt, pepper and dry mustard. Mix well.
• Next, add cheese, one handful at a time, whisking well between each addition. Once all of the cheese has been incorporated and is smooth, remove from heat. Gently pour cheese sauce over noodles and mix thoroughly.
• Pour noodle mixture into a 13 x 9 casserole dish or a cast-iron skillet. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over top of macaroni and cheese. Place into oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown on top.
• Cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before serving.

By now, you should know that I take my food very seriously.  And macaroni and cheese is no different.  This is one of those dishes that I have strong feelings about.  To be totally honest, I am a snob when it comes to this dish.  It doesn’t help that my Aunt Marsha and Uncle Jerry make the best mac ‘n cheese on Earth.  Their version set the standard for me and it’s a high bar to pass.  But before we get into my favorite way to make it, let’s talk about all the different variations of this dish that are available.

Much to my heartbreak and chagrin, Alex, my oldest son and the pickiest eater in the house will ONLY eat Kraft Deluxe (not easy mac and not the kind with the powdered cheese).  He loves the processed, almost neon-orange, sticky, gooey coated noodles.  He won’t go near homemade macaroni and cheese and if it’s not Kraft, he is not eating it.  I die a little inside each time I make it.  But I still cook it for him, because he’s my baby.  Matt and Nate will eat it, but they would rather it be homemade.  

Jump to recipe

To be clear, not all homemade mac ‘n cheese is equal.  I’ve had some “heated” discussions with folks about what should and should not be included in a recipe.  Many may disagree, but here are what I think are some Don’ts:

1. NEVER NEVER NEVER put CheezWhiz or Velveeta in your mac ‘n cheese.  I know people swear that Velveeta is necessary for creaminess and cheesiness.  Well, let me tell you, there is little to no cream or real cheese in this gelatinous log.  In my opinion, the only good place to use Velveeta is with a can of Rotel tomatoes to make a quick Queso dip.
2. No cream cheese.  I mean, at least it’s real cheese and it will make your macaroni and cheese creamy, but I just don’t think it’s necessary.  If you can make a good cheese sauce, it will be creamy without this addition.  I also think it doesn’t really do anything for the flavor.
3. No eggs.  I actually had to Google the reason why anyone would put eggs in their mac ‘n cheese.  If you want to be able to cut the finished dish into cubes, eggs would make it “sturdier,” but to me, macaroni and cheese should not be solid where you need to cut it with a knife or a fork.  I like to scoop mine out of the dish onto my plate
4. Adding veggies is questionable.  I’ve seen some recipes where people add peas, broccoli, green beans, spinach, and all other sorts of vegetation.  If you are trying to get more veggies into your diet, I suppose this is one way to do it.  I feel like if you are going to add anything to your macaroni and cheese, it should make it more flavorful and I just don’t get that from veggies in this dish.

Okay, so now that I’ve shared with you my big DON’Ts for macaroni and cheese, let me tell you what are definitely DOs:

1. You can’t have great mac ‘n cheese without a great cheese sauce.  It all starts with the roux.  A roux is a mixture of equal parts fat and flour.  The trick is to cook the flour long enough to get the raw flour taste out, but not burn it.  It involves a little practice and constant attention.  If you burn your roux, you will need to start over.  And perfecting your roux is a great kitchen skill to acquire, as it is the basis for many great sauces and soups.  If you know anything about Gumbo, you know the secret is in the roux.  
2. Use plenty of real, block cheese.  I stay away from anything that says “Cheese Product” or “Cheese Food.”  I usually stay away from pre-shredded cheese too, as they have anti-caking agents in them to prevent clumping in the package.  These same agents make it harder to achieve the velvety, creamy cheese sauce that I look for.  A good food processor makes quick work of shredding large amounts of cheese.  I’ve been using the same Cuisinart for the past 16 years.  I also like to use a variety of cheeses in my sauce.  I usually shoot for a 75%/25% mix of sharp cheddar and Swiss.  The Swiss cheese gives the sauce a little tang to it and I love that!  I’ve been known to throw in other kinds of cheese, depending what is in my fridge.  I try to avoid anything that won’t melt smoothly or any super-strong flavored cheeses that may overpower the sauce.
3. Whole milk, heavy cream or half and half are essential to take your cheese sauce to the next level.  While it’s perfectly okay to use reduced fat dairy, nothing tastes as good as full fat.  And make sure you check nutrition labels.  Many times when fat is taken out, it’s replaced with sugar, so just make sure to do your homework.  
4. Seasoning is EVERYTHING!  Nothing is worse than mac n’ cheese that looks amazing and when you bite into it, you taste nothing but noodles.  To add delicious flavor to my cheese sauce, I saute some onion and garlic in my butter before I add the flour to my roux.  I also make sure that I add some dry mustard powder to my cream sauce before adding the cheese.  The mustard adds a tanginess and depth of flavor that is just yummy.  Lawry’s seasoned salt and pepper round out the seasoning of the sauce.  On occasion, I like to add a pinch of nutmeg, which is great with cheese.  And please, oh please, don’t forget to season your noodles too.  I actually add sodium-free chicken bouillon to the water that I cook my elbow noodles in.  If you season every layer of your dish, your dish, you never have to worry about it lacking flavor, just make sure to pay attention to how much salt you are adding.
5. Breadcrumbs!!!  Some people don’t care for breadcrumbs on top of their macaroni and cheese, but I love it.  I think the crispy crunch of the toasted bread adds some nice texture to the dish, but it is not a necessity
6. As far as add-ins go, I have been known to add some bacon and/or caramelized onions into my macaroni and cheese.  If you have leftover ham from Christmas or Easter, you can add that in.  
7. My newest obsession is baking my mac ‘n cheese in a cast-iron skillet.  Doing it this way gives you yummy, crispy schnibbles of cheese all around the edges and on the bottom.  It’s sooooo good!

See?  I told you that I was passionate about macaroni and cheese.  It’s a family favorite and it’s one of my most requested dishes when we have company.  It’s also an amazing comfort food.  Try out my recipe and let me know what you think.  Since we are expecting 12-18 inches of snow today, I think I will whip up a batch to go with my brisket for dinner.  Now that I think about it…no need to make it because I have some in the freezer.  Man, am I hungry!

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Macaroni & Cheese

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword Cheesecake, Comfort Food, Mac N Cheese

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings 12 servings

Ingredients

• ½ cup prepared bread crumbs
• 4 cups assorted cheeses cheddar, swiss & whatever you like
• 4 cups whole milk
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt
• ½ tsp dry mustard
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• ½ small onion diced
• 4 tbsp flour
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 lb elbow noodles
• 3 cubes sodium free chicken boullion

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a large pot, bring 6-8 quarts of water to a boil. Add 3 sodium-free chicken boullion cubes to the water along with elbow noodles. Cook for 8 minutes. Drain but DO NOT RINSE and return the noodles to the pot.
• Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt 4 Tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add diced onion and sauté until translucent and soft. Add minced garlic and sauté until fragrant.
• Next, add flour and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly and taking care not to burn the roux.
• Slowly begin to whisk in milk, stirring constantly to eliminate any flour lumps. Allow the milk mixture to cook gently for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently so that milk does not scald.
• Once the mixture begins to thicken, add seasoned salt, pepper and dry mustard. Mix well.
• Next, add cheese, one handful at a time, whisking well between each addition. Once all of the cheese has been incorporated and is smooth, remove from heat. Gently pour cheese sauce over noodles and mix thoroughly.
• Pour noodle mixture into a 13 x 9 casserole dish or a cast-iron skillet. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over top of macaroni and cheese. Place into oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown on top.
• Cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before serving.