Grown Up Mac ‘n’ Cheese
Posted On 16 February 2021
Not out of a box. Nothing powdered.
Grown Up Mac ‘N’ Cheese
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- ½ pound pasta (your pick, but elbow is popular)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup half-and-half
- 2 cups shredded cheese (more if desired) (see notes)
Optional Ingredients
- 1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 cup spinach, rinsed, rough chopped
- ½ cup cooked bacon, crumbled
- ½ cup cooked crabmeat, shredded
- ¼ cup bread crumbs, panko or plain
Instructions
- Boil the pasta as directed and cook just slightly less than fully — it's going to bake in the sauce, too. Drain.
- Preheat oven to 325°F
- In a large saucepan (you'll see why later) melt the butter over medium-low heat then add the flour and stir and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the milk and half-and-half and cook over medium head, stirring constantly, until reduced slightly.
- Add about 1 cup of the shredded cheese and stir in to melt.
- Add the optional ingredients, if so desired. If spinach is one of them, cook until well-wilted.
- Remove from heat and add the pasta and stir to coat fully. (This is why you make the sauce in a large pan.)
- Grease a suitably sized baking dish. Add half the pasta and sauce. Add some of the remaining shredded cheese. Add the rest of the pasta and sauce. Add the remaining shredded cheese.
- If using bread crumbs, distribute across the top.
- Bake 15-20 minutes.
- Switch oven to broil and cook an additional 2-3 minutes until top starts to brown.
- Remove from oven and let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- A good sauce-holding pasta is a must. Elbows, shells, orecchiette.
- For cheese colby jack is good. So is mozzarella. So is cheddar, although it can get oily. Someone suggested smoked gouda and I think that’d be great but maybe a bit strong by itself, so you may want to cut it with one of the other cheeses.