Saturday, February 18, 2012

Old School Baked Mac N' Cheese

Ain't nothin' like some good ol' comfort food!
Complexity Level:  Easy
Makes 6-8 servings
Old School Baked Mac N' Cheese
What You Need:
1 16 oz. bag Macaroni Noodles
2 Eggs
5 cups Cheddar Cheese*
2 1/2 cups Milk
1 cup Butter
1 cup Flour
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Garlic Powder
2 tsp Onion Powder
1/2 tsp Black Pepper
2 tbsp Hot Sauce
*You are encouraged to mix up the cheese!  Gouda, Fontina, Smoked Gouda, Asiago, Blue Cheese, etc.  Make it fun, make it unique, make it yours!

Bread Crumb Topping (Mix and set aside)
1/2 cup Plain Bread Crumbs
3 tbsp Parmesan Cheese
Pinch Black Pepper
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder

To start, heat the butter and flour in a large sauce pan.  This is going to be your roux.  If this is your first time making a roux, you will want to tell me right now "Aimee, you're nuts!  This will burn!".  This is a natural thought and I encourage that you simple ignore it ;)


While that is going, start a pot of water to cook your pasta, and once ready, cook until al denti.  I like to slightly under cook the pasta so when baking, it doesn't become mush.

The flour and butter will cook together, but do be sure to stir it often as the butter melts.  Once combined it will coat the bottom of the sauce pan, and look like a thick paste.  Let this cook 2 minutes, stirring often, until it is a nice blonde color.

At this point, whisk the milk, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and hot sauce in a separate bowl, then add to the roux.  I like to use Whole Milk for this, but it is OK to use whichever you prefer!  We tried this recipe with Skim, and it was still super tasty and rich.


Once the milk is stirred in you may notice it is very thick.  You can add up to 3/4 cup more milk if desired.  I like a good thick mac, so I say play it by eye.  Either way, now that the milk and roux are one, add your cheese and stir it together.

Remove the sauce pan from heat.  It is OK if not all the cheese is melted, as you will then get some extra gooey bites later on. 


Next, crack your eggs into a separate bowl and whisk them with drops of the warm roux cheese mixture.  This is a step that will let you tempure the eggs.  If you skip this and add them directly to the cheese, they will scramble... and then you're not making dinner you're making breakfast (which is a whole different post)!

The tempured eggs can then be added to the cheese mixture.  Using a spatula stir until combined.  It is now time to build yourself a delicious Mac N' Cheese casserole.

Grease a 9X13in baking dish.  Stir you Macaroni into the Cheese mixture, then pour into your baking dish.  Finally, top with the Parmesan and Bread crumb mixture.  I added a few pieces of butter atop this to melt into the bred crumbs, but this is an optional step if you are trying to cut fat when possible.


Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour and serve!  I like my Mac with some fresh parsley and sliced tomatoes, but it doesn't half to stop there!


This is amazing even the next day as a leftover!  In fact, you could go crazy and deep fry leftovers to make deep fried Mac N Cheese bites!

I hope you enjoy this cheesy feast!

12 comments:

  1. Mac and cheese is so comforting. Yours looks delicious!!

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  2. Thanks Stephanie! My husband was sitting around the house, and I turned to him and said "Lover, I'm craving homemade Mac N Cheese and so I am going to make it ASAP. Is that OK?" and to which he said, in a song like voice, "Yeessss!!!!! Mwuah!"

    Needless to say its all gone, and it was totally worth it!

    Thanks for stopping by ;)

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  3. Yep, there's truly nothing like mac n'cheese. No need for improvement here!

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  4. Now that is what I call perfect! We were just talking about classic mac last night, as a matter of fact. We usually avoid it (for obvious reasons) but it might just be time for a splurge. Thanks for sharing!

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  5. This mac and cheese sounds absolutely stellar!

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  6. The ultimate recipe for mac n' cheese! Yumm!

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  7. This looks so delicious. I love the philosophy of your page- that is how I cook- taking advantage of the bargains most of the time. Looking forward to poking around your blog more. ;)

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  8. Not to be cheesy, but thanks for all your notes!!!

    Frank -- I was cracking up at how honest you are! LOVE IT :)

    Anita -- We decided it was a good splurge night, and I will be honest, no regrets here!!!

    Peggy and Anna, thanks! Great use of the word "stellar", we need to bring that back!!! lol

    Sarah -- your words are inspiring! Thank you for stopping by and sharing your experiences too! I will admit, I'm addicted to Bargains!!!

    Thanks guys!!!

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  9. This looks so good I found you on RecipesUS.com love your blog.
    Check out mine if you get time

    http://thedailysmash101.blogspot.com

    Have a great day.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for stopping by! I checked out your mac, and it looked YUMMMMYYYY!!! I am now your newest follower ;) I"m glad we were able to connect via RecipesUS! What a small foodie world it is! lol. Keep up those yummy posts! I will be stopping by more often!

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  10. Doubled the recipe and wonder if I can freeze half of it before baking?

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    Replies
    1. I would say you could! And that would make it so nice and fast to make the next time around!!

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