Best Ever Macaroni And Cheese With Variations Recipes

BEST-EVER MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare pasta according to package directions for al dente.
• Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium. Add next 6 ingredients; cook, stirring, 30 seconds. Add flour, and cook, stirring, until golden, 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk and cream. Bring to a boil, whisking occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer, whisking, until slightly thickened, 5 minutes. Stir in Worcestershire sauce. Remove from heat; stir in 3/4 cup each of shredded Cheddar cheeses until melted. (Reserve remaining 1/4 cup each of shredded cheeses.) Stir in pasta and diced cheeses; pour into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch (3-quart) baking dish.
• Bake on a rimmed baking sheet in preheated oven until bubbly and golden, 30 minutes. Remove from oven; increase oven temperature to broil. Sprinkle with reserved shredded cheeses; broil 6 inches from heat until cheeses are melted and golden, about 2 minutes. Remove from oven; cool slightly on a wire rack, about 15 minutes.

BEST BAKED MACARONI AND CHEESE EVER!

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Cook macaroni just until al dente and drain, set aside.
• While pasta is boiling, melt the butter in a large saucepan.
• Whisk in the flour over medium heat until smooth & bubbly (only about a minute).
• Stir in evaporated milk, cheese spread, pepper, mustard, seasoned salt, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce and cayenne pepper Keep cooking and stirring over medium heat until sauce has thickened (about 3 or 4 minutes).
• Add the shredded cheddar cheese and Velveeta to the white sauce and stir just until cheeses have melted.
• Add macaroni and stir until pasta is evenly coated with the cheese sauce.
• Pour into a casserole dish sprayed with Pam.
• Arrange cheese slices on top, sprinkle with cracker crumbs and dot somewhat generously with butter.
• Bake 15-20 minutes or until top is nice and golden and casserole is heated through.
• Let stand about 5 minutes before serving and enjoy!

BEST-EVER MACARONI AND CHEESE WITH VARIATIONS

Steps:

• In large pot, cook pasta according to package directions; reserve 1/2 cup cooking water before draining. In small skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat; stir in breadcrumbs. Cook, stirring, until browned, 2 minutes. Remove from skillet; reserve.
• For cheese sauce, in pasta pot, melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat; whisk in flour, mustard, salt and pepper until blended. Whisk in milk; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring, until thickened, 1 minute. Stir in 1 2/3 cups cheddar, fontina and reserved water until smooth. Remove from heat. Stir in pasta until coated with sauce. Serve sprinkled with remaining 1/3 cup cheddar, reserved breadcrumbs and parsley.
• For Mac 'n Cheese Pizza.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat 12 inch round pizza pan with cooking spray.
• Toss 10 frozen cocktail-size meatballs (thawed and halved) with 1/4 cup pizza sauce and 1/4 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning; reserve.
• Prepare Best-Ever Macaroni and Cheese, substituting spaghetti for cavatappi and omitting reserved cooking water and breadcrumb mixture; in cheese sauce, omit cheddar, stirring 1 cup mozzarella cheese into sauce along with the 1 cup of shredded fontina cheese.
• Spread pasta mixture in pan. Top with 3/4 cup pizza sauce then sprinkle with additional 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese. Top with reserved meatballs, cut sides down. Bake until cheese melts, 20 minutes. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley.
• For South-of-the-Border Mac 'n Cheese Bake.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Prepare Best-Ever Macaroni 'n Cheese, substituting wagon wheel pasta for cavatappi and omitting breadcrumb mixture; in cheese sauce, omit cheddar and fontina, substituting 1 cup jarred salsa con queso and 1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese, stirring all of cheese into sauce.
• Stir 1 link (4 oz) chorizo sausage, sliced, into sauce along with wagon wheel pasta. Transfer pasta mixture to 2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with 2 cups crushed white tortilla chips (about 20 chips). Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro.
• Each recipe serves 6 people.

BEST EVER MACARONI CHEESE RECIPE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Spread the baguette chunks over a baking sheet, drizzle with the melted butter and season. Bake for 6 mins until crisp, then set aside.
• Boil the pasta for 2 mins less than stated on the pack, then drain. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the garlic and English mustard powder, cook for 1 min, then stir in the plain flour.
• Cook for 1 min more, then gradually whisk in the milk until you have a lump-free sauce. Simmer for 5 mins, whisking all the time until thickened. Take off the heat, then stir in the cheddar and half the parmesan.
• Stir the pasta and some seasoning into the cheesy sauce. Tip into a large ovenproof dish, or four individual dishes.
• Scatter over the bread and the remaining parmesan, then bake for 20 mins until crisp and golden. Can be frozen before baking - defrost thoroughly before cooking.

"WORLD'S BEST" MACARONI & CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350; F. Set a large pot of water on high heat.
• Meanwhile, begin the sauce by making a roux: in a medium saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Continue to stir this roux over medium heat for two to three minutes.
• The roux should be cooked and free of the flour flavor but still light in color.
• Gradually add milk, whisking briskly to maintain a smooth sauce.
• Cook the sauce for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid scorching.
• When sauce thickens, add cheeses, salt and spices to the sauce, and stir until all the cheese has melted. I make my sauces in the microwave; turns out great and never scorches.
• Somewhere during this sauce-cooking process, your pasta water has started boiling. The original is made with Penne noodles. Add a generous amount of salt to the water and cook the pasta until almost but not quite al dente (two minutes before the package directions indicate). You want barely undercooked pasta so that it can finish in the oven later. Halt the cooking by draining the pasta and rinsing with cold water. Return pasta to pot.
• Pour sauce over pasta and stir until completely incorporated. The combination should be fairly saucy, almost soupy.
• Dish the mixture into a buttered 9-13 pan and sprinkle with extra grated cheeses and cayenne. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes, until you have beautiful, browned edges. Those edges will be a welcome and flavorful addition to each serving.
• Let the dish sit for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. I divided this in 2 containers and froze one.

BEST EVER MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350*F.
• Grease a deep 3-quart baking dish and set aside.
• Cook bacon until crispy, reserving the grease.
• Cook macaroni according to package instructions for al dente.
• Drain and set aside.
• Crumble the bacon into the crushed crackers and add 1 cup of the grated cheese.
• Pulse in a food processor and set aside.
• Measure 6 tbs of bacon grease and heat in a large saucepan until bubbling.
• Add flour all at once, whisking until incorporated.
• Add the onion powder, both paprikas, mustard powder, and cayenne pepper.
• Continue to whisk for another 1-2 minutes.
• Slowly whisk in the milk and evaporated milk.
• Whisk continuously on medium-high heat until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens slightly.
• Lower the temperature to a simmer.
• Add the worcestershire, nutmeg, and hot sauce.
• Stir in the remaining 5 cups of grated cheese.
• Stir over low heat until the cheeses are melted.
• Beat the two eggs in a small bowl.
• Add about a cup of the cheese sauce mixture to the eggs, and whisk rapidly.
• Whisk the egg mixture back into the pot.
• Stir the cooked macaroni into the cheese sauce mixture. It will be very loose; the macaroni will absorb excess liquid as it bakes.
• Pour the macaroni and cheese mixture into the prepared baking dish.
• Top with the cracker-bacon-cheese mixture.
• Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the middle is set.
• Allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving.