Southern Mac Cheese Recipes

GRANDMA'S SOUTHERN MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until tender yet firm to the bite, 8 minutes. Drain.
• Layer some of the macaroni in a 5-quart baking dish; top with a layer of Cheddar cheese. Continue layering macaroni and Cheddar cheese into the dish, ending with a Cheddar cheese layer.
• Beat milk, eggs, and mustard together in a bowl; pour over macaroni mixture, ensuring milk mixture gets to all of the macaroni.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted and just before cheese around the sides gets crisp, 20 to 25 minutes. Season with black pepper.

CLASSIC SOUTHERN MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch ovenproof casserole dish.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook until tender (a little more than al dente), about 12 minutes. Drain well in a colander.
• In a large bowl, combine the macaroni, cheese, milk and eggs. Add some salt and pepper. Transfer to the prepared dish.
• Bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool slightly before serving.

SOUTHERN BAKED MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• Cook the macaroni according to the package directions until 3 minutes less than fully cooked. Drain and rinse under cold water until cooled; drain well. Add the cooked pasta back to the pot.
• Put the eggs, heavy cream, Cajun seasoning, ground mustard, nutmeg and a big pinch of salt in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Pour over the cooked pasta and stir to combine.
• Toss together the Cheddar, mozzarella and Gouda in a large bowl. Add the cheeses to the pot and stir to evenly combine. Transfer the mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
• Bake until the center of the mac and cheese is set and the top is golden brown, 60 to 70 minutes. Let cool about 10 minutes before serving.

SOUTHERN MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• In a large bowl combine cooked pasta, cottage cheese, sour cream, eggs, Cheddar cheese and cayenne pepper. Mix well and transfer to prepared dish. Sprinkle with paprika.
• Cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake 40 minutes.

TRIPLE-CHEESE MACARONI

Steps:

• Cook macaroni according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, butter, mustard, seasoned salt and pepper until combined. Stir in the process cheese and 1-1/2 cups of each cheddar cheese. , Drain macaroni; stir into cheese mixture. Pour into a greased 3-qt. baking dish. Top with remaining cheeses. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and edges are bubbly.

SOUTHERN MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch or other 3-quart baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain, then rinse with cold water.
• Using the same pot the macaroni was cooked in, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. While whisking constantly, slowly add the milk and then the heavy cream. Bring to a simmer, then add the cream cheese and all but 1/2 cup shredded cheddar and stir until melted. Stir in the granulated garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Remove the cheese sauce from the heat and stir in the macaroni. Season with salt and pepper.
• Whisk together the eggs and sour cream in a small bowl and then fold into the mac and cheese. Spread in the baking dish, then fold in the cubed cheddar and top with the remaining 1/2 cup shredded cheddar. Bake until the mac and cheese just begins to brown on top, 20 to 30 minutes. Loosely cover with foil and bake 10 to 15 more minutes.

SOUTHERN MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Set a large pot of salted water to boil. Preheat oven to 350. Butter four 10-ounce ramekins. Cook pasta 3 minutes short of al dente; drain.
• In a large bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups cheddar, eggs, half-and-half, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add pasta, and stir to combine; divide among ramekins.
• In a food processor, pulse bread and melted butter until coarse crumbs form; season with salt and pepper. Dividing evenly, top pasta mixture with 1/2 cup cheddar, then sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Place ramekins on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until mac and cheese is golden and bubbling, about 20 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

SOUTHERN MACARONI AND CHEESE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Spray a 9x13-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.
• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a boil. Stir in the macaroni and return to a boil. Cook pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until it has cooked through but is still slightly firm, about 8 minutes; drain.
• Slowly melt butter in a large pot over low heat. Stir in evaporated milk and black pepper; cook until heated through.
• Whisk eggs in a bowl until smooth; whisk about 1/2 cup of the evaporated milk mixture into the eggs, 1 tablespoon at a time, until thoroughly incorporated. Whisk the egg mixture back into the saucepan with evaporated milk mixture. Continue to heat gently, whisking constantly, until the evaporated milk mixture almost comes to a simmer and the sauce thickens.
• Gently mix salt and cooked macaroni into the sauce and stir to combine.
• Spoon 1/4 of the macaroni mixture in a layer into the bottom of the prepared casserole dish and top with 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese. Repeat layers three more times; top last cheese layer with paprika to taste.
• Bake in the preheated oven until casserole is bubbling, about 20 minutes.

SOUTHERN MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add macaroni and cook according to package directions until a little under al dente, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a colander and rinse under cold water to stop cooking. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk milk and eggs. Add cooked macaroni, 2 cups extra-sharp Cheddar, melted butter, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and stir until well combined.
• Add half the macaroni mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish in an even layer. Sprinkle 1 1/2 cups Colby Jack evenly on top. Spread the remaining macaroni mixture on top in an even layer. Cover with aluminum foil, transfer to the middle rack of the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
• Remove from oven. Carefully remove and discard the aluminum foil. Top the macaroni mixture with the remaining 2 cups Cheddar and 1/2 cup Colby Jack. Broil on top rack until cheese is browned in spots, 3 to 5 minutes. (The broiled cheese can go from golden to burnt fairly quickly, so keep a close eye on it.)
• Remove from oven and let cool until the macaroni and cheese is fully set, 10 to 15 minutes. (The mixture may first appear jiggly, but it will firm up as it cools.) Serve warm.

SOUTHERN-STYLE MAC 'N' CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into small bite-sized chunks. Toss in a 20cm gratin dish with the olive oil, cayenne and some seasoning. Roast for 25-30 mins, or until golden and soft, tossing occasionally.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Stir together to make a roux, and cook for a couple of mins. Remove from the heat, then slowly pour in the milk a little at a time, stirring well after each addition. Put the pan back on the heat and bring to the boil, stirring all the time. Turn the heat down, add the mustard and nutmeg, and season well. Add in most of the cheese (keep some for the top) and continue to stir. Taste for seasoning. Keep on a low heat so it stays warm until the macaroni is ready.
• Cook the macaroni in boiling, lightly salted water for a couple of minutes less than it says on the packet. Drain (reserve some of the pasta cooking water), then stir the pasta and cooked sweet potato into the cheese sauce. The mixture should be quite thick, but add a little of the pasta cooking water to loosen if necessary. Taste for seasoning.
• Tip the mixture into the gratin dish, then scatter over the rest of the cheese and return to the oven. Bake for about 20-30 mins, or until the top is golden brown and bubbling.