Baked Mac and Cheese
User Reviews
4
27 reviews
Good
-
Prep Time
10 mins
-
Cook Time
45 mins
-
Total Time
55 mins
-
Servings
8 servings
-
Course
Main Course
-
Cuisine
American
Baked Mac and Cheese
Report
Traditional baked mac and cheese is such a comfort food. Make this one and gather the family around. This is a fancy version of macaroni and cheese with a few more spices and breadcrumb topping.
Share:
Ingredients
- 1/2 /2 pound elbow macaroni (about 2 cups)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 tablespoon mustard powder
- 3 cups milk whole
- 1/3 /3 cup yellow onion finely diced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 /2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 egg large
- 12 ounces sharp cheddar cheese about 3 cups, shredded
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- black pepper fresh
Topping:
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large pot of boiling, extremely salted water cook the pasta to al dente. Do not overcook it!
- While the pasta is cooking, in a separate pot, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and mustard and keep it moving for about three minutes. Make sure it's free of lumps. Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, and paprika. Simmer for ten minutes and remove the bay leaf. It will thicken, trust me. Stir in 1 cup of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper.
- Temper in the egg which means to just bring the temperature of the egg up a little so that when you add it to the cheese sauce it doesn't scramble. Just throw a couple of tablespoons of the warm cheese mixture into a small bowl with the egg and mix. Then throw the egg mixture into the cheese mixture.
- Fold the macaroni into the cheese mixture and pour into a 2-quart casserole dish (an 11x7 or 8x10) . Top with remaining cheese.
- Melt the butter in the microwave in a small bowl and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for five to ten minutes before serving.
Notes
- 1) When making dishes like this it's better if you shred your own cheese. The pre-shredded cheeses have added ingredients to make the cheese not clump together and makes them not melt as well. I actually used pre-shredded cheese here and it was fine but if you want it extra creamy shred your own.2) People that did not have success with this recipe did not salt their pasta water correctly. You want to salt it so much that if you tasted the water it would taste like the ocean.3) You need SHARP cheddar cheese. That's what gives it flavor. Don't use mild.
- Source: Alton Brown
Genuine Reviews
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4
27 reviews
Good
Other Recipes
You'll Also Love
