Really Awesome Macaroni And Cheese Recipes

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.

Steps:

• Boil the pasta JUST until al dente, according to package directions. Drain and return to the pan you boiled it in. Set aside. (Mix in a little butter to keep the noodles from sticking if it's going to be awhile before you make the sauce)
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
• To a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the butter. When the butter has melted, add the flour, salt, dry mustard, pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika. With a wooden spoon or whisk, stir constantly for three minutes.
• Add the milk in a thin stream, stirring constantly with a whisk. Continue to stir constantly until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, 5-8 minutes.
• Remove from heat and add 2 cups of the cheese, stirring until melted. You'll reserve the last cup of cheese for topping. Pour the cheese sauce over the pasta and toss gently until all of the pasta is coated.
• Add half the pasta to a two-quart casserole dish (I like a tall 8-inch by 8-inch baking dish). Sprinkle on half the cheese. Add the rest of the pasta. Sprinkle on the rest of the cheese, then dust lightly with the smoked paprika.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the mac and cheese is bubbling and browning on top.
• Serve, topping individual servings with parsley or cooked, chopped bacon if desired.

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, 8 minutes. Drain.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat; stir in flour, salt, and pepper until smooth, about 5 minutes. Slowly pour milk into butter-flour mixture while continuously stirring until mixture is smooth and bubbling, about 5 minutes. Add Cheddar cheese to milk mixture and stir until cheese is melted, 2 to 4 minutes.
• Fold macaroni into cheese sauce until coated.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Butter a 13x9x2 inch glass baking dish.
• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook macaroni al dente.
• Drain and place in the buttered dish.
• Add the cubed cheddar and combine.
• Whisk flour, salt, mustard, pepper, cayenne and nutmeg in a medium bowl until no lumps are visible.
• Gradually whisk in half-and-half, followed by the whipping cream and finally the sour cream.
• Add eggs and Worcestershire sauce.
• Whisk well to blend.
• Pour mixture over macaroni and cheese mixture.
• Sprinkle with the grated cheese.
• Bake in the center of the oven, 25 minutes until edges are set but center is still liquid.
• Remove from oven and let stand about 10 minutes to thicken sauce.
• The sauce will still be creamy.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook until slightly al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside to keep warm.
• Whisk the eggs in a large bowl until frothy. When I say LARGE bowl, I mean LARGE!
• Add the Velveeta, butter and 2 cups of the half-and-half to the large bowl of eggs.
• Add the warm macaroni tossing until the cheese has melted and the mixture is smooth.
• NOW - Get your big strong Man, son, or neighbor to help here! This can get really hard to stir --
• Add the remaining half-and-half, 3 cups of the sharp yellow Cheddar, the remaining grated cheeses, and salt and pepper, tossing until completely combined in the large bowl.
• Grease your pans with either a cooking spray or a little butter (hey, what is more butter at this point?).
• Pour the mixture into 9 by 13-inch casserole or baking dishes (approximately 3 (3-quart) baking dishes) and bake for 30 minutes. (I buy the disposable pans at the store, way easier).
• Sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of sharp yellow cheese and bake until golden brown on top, about 30 minutes more. Watch it pretty close after about 15 minutes.
• Serve hot.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Cook macaroni according to package instructions.
• Drain, rinse and set aside.
• In same pot over low heat, melt the butter.
• Add flour, salt and pepper and whisk into melted butter until smooth.
• Simmer and stir until mixture thickens into a paste and is golden.
• Slowly add milk and whisk into butter mixture until smooth.
• Bring to boil and then simmer until thickened.
• There is no way to tell you how thick, except to say it should be thicker than gravy but not as thick as pudding.
• If you have made basic white sauce, you will know when it is thick enough.
• Remove pot from heat.
• Add cheddar cheese and stir until cheese starts to melt.
• Add macaroni and stir until coated.
• Pour into a 9 x 12 baking dish or 2 quart casserole.
• As an extra indulgence, you can sprinkle 4 oz more cheese on top.
• I only do this if I happen to buy a 12 oz bag or block instead of 8 oz.
• Bake about 20- 30 minutes, when you see top getting a bit crispy and brown.

Steps:

• Cook macaroni according to package directions. , Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°. In a large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour until smooth. Gradually add 1-1/2 cups milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat; stir in sour cream, Velveeta, Parmesan cheese, salt, mustard and pepper until smooth and cheese is melted. Add additional milk to reach desired consistency. , Drain macaroni; toss with cheddar cheese. Transfer to a greased 3-qt. baking dish. Stir in cream sauce. , Bake, uncovered, 35-40 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 X 13 baking dish. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8-10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• In medium saucepan, melt butter and stir in flour to make a roux. Cook 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly, then whisk in warm milk a little at a time to make a white sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer. Mix in salt, pepper, and cayenne and stir frequently until sauce thickens.
• Remove pan from heat and stir in cheddar, mozzarella and jack cheese. Combine pasta with sace and stir well. Pour into baking dish. Use paprika on top if desired. Bake 45-60 minutes, or until top is the desired cripiness. Let rest 20 minutes before serving.