Ridiculously Creamy Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

Why You'll Love This Mac & Cheese Recipe

• Insanely creamy homemade 5 cheese sauce
• Cheese sauce to macaroni ratio is perfection- extra saucy!
• A special ingredient gives the cheese sauce top level creaminess!
• True comfort food at its finest
• Layers of flavor from the base ingredients
• Can be eaten straight from the pot or finished in the oven

Ingredients To Use

• Pasta: You want a pasta that allows the cheese sauce to find its way into the crevasses, like an elbow or shell pasta. I often find myself grabbing the large elbow pasta (they aren't really large, but I find the small is just too small) since that's typically what I have on hand.
• Butter: Every macaroni and cheese recipe starts with butter. Always grab unsalted, you can always add more salt to a recipe but you can never remove it.
• Onion: You don't need much, just ¼ cup.
• Garlic: Using grated garlic adds so much flavor! If you don't have a fine grater, just finely mince the garlic.
• Chicken Broth: Most macaroni and cheese recipes don't have this ingredient, but it adds so much flavor! I always grab low-sodium chicken broth.
• Flour: We're just using regular all-purpose flour. I haven't tried any other flour, though if needing gluten free, King Arthur Measure for Measure typically works for just about anything.
• Heavy Cream: Using heavy cream gives the cheese sauce that extra thickness and creaminess that we want.
• Milk: Adding milk helps thin out the cheese sauce without watering it down. For best results, I recommend using whole milk, though 2% can work in a pinch.
• Cheese: This macaroni and cheese recipe calls for 5 cheeses. I recommend using combination of varying levels of sharp cheeses like asiago, sharp white cheddar, monterey jack, parmesan paired with a creamy cheese like Boursin (secret ingredient!)
• Spices: We're using pantry staple spices- salt, white pepper, ground mustard and dried parsley.

How To Make Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

1. Cook the Pasta: This remaining steps can be done while the pasta cooks. You want to heavily salt the water (always for pasta!), I'm talking 1 Tablespoon of salt. Cook the pasta until al dente, about 1 minute less than the box recommends. Drain, then toss with a touch of butter to prevent them from sticking together. If the pasta gets done at the same time as the cheese sauce, no need for the extra butter.
2. Start the Cheese Sauce: Melt the butter on the stove, add in the onion and cook until soft. Add in the chicken broth. Then, allow it to reduce by half. Toss in the garlic and let it cook for a minute.
3. Make the Roux: Vigorously whisk in the flour, little by little, and keep whisking until the there is a thick paste. Allow this to cook for a minute. If you're not familiar with a roux, pronounced "roo", it's a way to thicken things like gravy, sauce, macaroni and cheese or soup - just like in my creamy chicken and rice soup.
4. Add the Milk & Heavy Cream: Whisk in the milk and heavy cream, allowing the roux to break apart, then bring it to a simmer. The sauce will begin to thicken.
5. Add the Cheese: Whisk in all of the cheese. Once the cheese is almost completely melted, remove from the heat and keep whisking until fully melted.
6. Combine Pasta & Cheese Sauce: Add the pasta to the cheese sauce, giving a good stir, making sure all the pasta is completely coated.

Tips For Creamy Mac and Cheese

Some find that when making mac and cheese the cheese sauce gets grainy- here's a few tips to ensure it's creamy.

• Let the chicken brother reduce. Be patient, we want the chicken broth to reduce by half not only to develop flavors but to make sure there is correct ratio for to make the roux.
• Vigorously whisk the butter and flour together. Whisking will prevent the flour from clumping.
• Keep an eye on the cheese. Just before the cheese is completely melted, remove it from the heat and continue whisking.
• Try to stay away from pre-shredded cheese. I know, it's one more step but so worth it. Grab that block cheese, it's more moist and melts much more nicely- pre-shredded cheese contains additives to help keep its shape. We want the cheese to melt easily into the sauce. I absolutely love this cheese grater.

Try These Other Recipes Next!

• Creamy Mushroom Pasta
• Really Good Three Cheese Baked Ziti (One Pan!)
• Italian Sausage Pasta (One Pan!)
• Easy Baked Meatballs