Best French Onion Baked Mac And Cheese Recipes

FRENCH ONION MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir onions, thyme, and bay leaf in the butter for 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until onions are browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a plate and discard the bay leaf. Reserve the skillet.
• 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, about 8 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt remaining butter in the reserved skillet over medium heat. Whisk in flour for 1 minute, then whisk in beef broth and milk and bring to a boil; season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in Gruyere cheese until melted.
• Drain macaroni and toss with onion and sauce until well combined.

NICOLE'S FRENCH ONION MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 40 minutes.
• Add thyme, Worcestershire, and sherry and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 3 minutes. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Remove onions from the pan and set aside. Reserve skillet.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 2 teaspoons salt. Add pasta and cook until tender, about 6 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Butter a 9x13-inch or 3-quart baking dish.
• Place the reserved skillet over medium heat and add remaining butter. When butter has melted, whisk in flour and cook, stirring often, 2 minutes. Whisk in milk and bring mixture to a simmer, stirring often. Sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper and cook 5 minutes, stirring often. Stir in 1 1/2 cups Cheddar and 1 cup Swiss cheese and remove from heat.
• Stir in reserved onions and pasta and pour mixture into the buttered baking dish. Tear bread slices in half and place over the top of the pasta mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden and bubbly, about 25 minutes.

FRENCH ONION MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat a skillet over medium high heat and cook onions, thyme, and bay leaf in butter for 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper, lower heat and cook until onions are browned, about 10 to 15 minutes, transfer to a plate, discard bay leaf.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add pasta and cook until al dente; drain and return to pot.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the skillet over medium heat.
• Whisk in flour for about a minute, then whisk in chicken stock and milk and bring to a boil.
• Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, lower heat and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in cheese to melt.
• Combine onions and cheese sauce with pasta and toss.

FRENCH ONION MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. (If you're planning to bake the macaroni and cheese in a baking dish instead of a skillet, butter 9-by-13-inch baking dish or other 3-quart casserole.)
• Meanwhile, in a deep, large (12-inch) ovenproof skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions, thyme sprigs and bay leaf, if using, and season with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid, baking sheet or foil and cook, stirring once or twice, until the onions are softened, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Uncover and continue to cook on medium-high, stirring occasionally, until deep golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. If the onions look dry, add a few tablespoons of water at a time to prevent them from burning, scraping up any browned bits that are stuck to the bottom of the skillet. (You will need to do this several times.)
• While the onions are cooking, heat the oven to 450 degrees. Cook the pasta in the boiling water until 2 minutes shy of al dente; drain and set aside. Rub one side of each baguette slice with garlic.
• When the onions are a deep golden brown, discard the thyme sprigs and bay leaf and deglaze the skillet with the vinegar until evaporated, scraping up browned bits as you go, about 30 seconds. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. When melted, add the flour and cook, stirring, until the flour begins to stick to the bottom of the pan and has turned a light golden brown, about 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, whisking often.
• Reserve 1 cup of the Gruyère. Carefully add the remaining Gruyère and all the Cheddar to the caramelized onion mixture and carefully stir until melted. If your pan is big enough, add the cooked pasta and stir to combine, or combine the sauce and pasta in the prepared dish.
• Spread the pasta mixture in an even layer in the prepared dish, then top with the baguette slices, garlic-side up. Sprinkle the toasts with the reserved 1 cup Gruyère and season with pepper. Place the skillet or dish on a sheet pan and bake until bubbly and brown in spots, 10 to 15 minutes. If you like a crispier top, broil for a few minutes. Let cool slightly, then garnish with fresh thyme leaves.