Best Posh Macaroni Cheese Recipes

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OLD-FASHIONED MACARONI AND CHEESE



Old-Fashioned Macaroni and Cheese image

Bring back the taste of days gone by with this ooey-gooey mac-and-cheese classic. A little ground mustard and hot pepper sauce give it just the right spice. -James Backman, Centralia, Washington

Provided by Taste of Home

Categories     Dinner     Side Dishes

Time 1h

Yield 16 servings.

Number Of Ingredients 9

3-1/2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (about 12 ounces)
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Few dashes hot pepper sauce
3-1/2 cups whole milk
5 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided

Steps:

  • Cook macaroni in boiling water until almost tender; drain. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, melt butter. Stir in the flour, salt, mustard, pepper and pepper sauce until smooth. Cook for 1 minute or until bubbly. Stir in the macaroni, milk and 4 cups cheese. , Transfer to an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish. Cover and bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes or until bubbly. Uncover; sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Facts :

BEST-EVER MACARONI AND CHEESE



Best-Ever Macaroni and Cheese image

In the South, mac 'n cheese is like everyone's favorite aunt-and this best-ever recipe beats out the rest.

Provided by Southern Living Test Kitchen

Categories     Casserole

Time 1h10m

Yield Serves 10

Number Of Ingredients 14

16 ounces uncooked large elbow macaroni, large shells, or cavatappi pasta
6 tablespoons salted butter
⅓ cup grated yellow onion
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 ½ cups milk
1 ¾ cups heavy cream
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
4 ounces extra-sharp yellow Cheddar cheese, shredded (about 1 cup), plus 4 oz. diced (about 1 cup), divided
4 ounces sharp white Cheddar cheese, shredded, (about 1 cup), plus 4 oz. diced (about 1 cup), divided

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.

GLAM MAC AND CHEESE



Glam Mac and Cheese image

A classic "just for the family" dish turned completely on its head. Serve this little number in individual portions to make it worthy of any dinner-party table. I have used Dolcelatte as my cheese of choice. It is softer round the edges than Stilton and incredibly moreish. It dresses up this British classic to make it a meal fit for royalty.

Provided by Lorraine Pascale

Categories     main-dish

Time 50m

Yield serves 4 glamorous guests

Number Of Ingredients 16

3 cups/12oz/340g macaroni
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup/3oz/80g pancetta, diced
1 small handful of fresh thyme leaves
3 scallions, trimmed and finely sliced
2 cups/3 1/2 oz/100g bread crumbs
1 handful of chopped fresh parsley
3 tbsp/1 1/2 oz/40g butter
5 tbsp/1 1/2oz/40g all-purpose flour
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1 tsp mustard powder
generous 3/4 cup/7fl oz/200ml milk
scant 1 1/4 cup/10fl oz/285ml heavy cream
7oz/200g dolcelatte or Gorgonzola cheese (if you are not a blue cheese fan a good Cheddar will also suit instead)
4oz/115g Parmesan cheese
Large shallow casserole dish or 4 large ramekins

Steps:

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
  • Cook the macaroni in a large pan of boiling salted water. It needs to be cooked to just under what you would normally do, as the pasta will be cooked again in the oven. Drain, then return to the pan and set aside.
  • Fry the pancetta in a medium skillet over gentle heat until it just starts to brown and crisp up, then add the thyme leaves and scallions and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and add its contents to the pasta.
  • For the sauce, put the butter, flour, nutmeg, and mustard in a small pan set over medium heat and cook until the butter has melted. Mix the milk and cream together in a pitcher and add a little to the flour and butter in the pan, stirring well. Keep adding the milk mixture, bit by bit, stirring well each time. This will prevent the sauce from going lumpy. The temptation is to put all the milk in at once only to find you are left with clumps of flour floating on the surface. Should this happen, take the pan off the heat and whisk it like crazy. This normally does the trick to eliminate all the lumps! Make sure you get the spoon into the "corners" of the pan, as stray mounds of flour often lurk there. Once the sauce has fully come together, turn up the heat and boil for a minute or two. The sauce will thicken considerably, then remove the pan from the heat. Add two-thirds of both of the cheeses to the sauce while it is still hot and combine well. It may be a bit lumpy, but that is fine. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add to the pasta mix. Stir everything together and spoon into a shallow casserole dish or 4 individual large ramekins.
  • Sprinkle the top with the rest of the cheese and the bread crumbs and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese starts to bubble and the topping goes crumbly and brown. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve while hot.

THE BEST BAKED MAC AND CHEESE



The Best Baked Mac and Cheese image

A blend of three cheeses delivers a punch of flavor in this creamy mac and cheese. Toasted breadcrumbs give a crunchy texture contrast.

Provided by Food Network Kitchen

Categories     main-dish

Time 1h10m

Yield 8 to 10 servings

Number Of Ingredients 11

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound elbow macaroni
Half a loaf day-old French bread
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons mustard powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
3 cups milk
8 ounces fontina cheese, grated (about 2 cups)
8 ounces Gruyere, grated (about 2 cups)
1 pound sharp yellow Cheddar, grated (about 4 cups)

Steps:

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just slightly softened, about 6 minutes. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta and rinse under cold water.
  • Meanwhile, remove the crusts from the bread and cut into 1-inch cubes. Pulse in the food processor until the bread breaks into bean-sized pieces.
  • Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the breadcrumbs and cook, stirring, until toasted, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper.
  • Melt 4 tablespoons of the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, mustard powder and cayenne. Cook, whisking constantly, until smooth and slightly golden, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk and cook, whisking occasionally, until the sauce begins to boil and thicken, about 7 minutes, then remove from heat. Stir in the fontina, Gruyere and all but 1 1/2 cups of the Cheddar until fully melted. Stir in the pasta, adding the reserved pasta water as needed to make a creamy sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a small bowl in the microwave. Brush a 9-by-13-inch glass or ceramic baking dish with the melted butter. Spread the pasta mixture in the prepared dish. Sprinkle the remaining Cheddar evenly over the pasta, then scatter the toasted breadcrumbs on top. Bake until heated through and just bubbling, about 25 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

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