Homemade Mac and Cheese

Macaroni and Cheese must be my favorite food of all time! Whenever we have a barbecue, I always love the side dishes the most and the homemade mac and cheese is definitely the best of all. I like to order mac and cheese at restaurants and compare to see which is the best, and I used to love some of the restaurant styles the most. But now, I'm all about this recipe. It's super easy, takes only a few minutes longer to make this than the yucky box style, and the kids will love it! If you do the baked version, it will obviously take longer... but worth it!!

I always feel so satisfied when my kids enjoy something that I made. They are getting into the picky stages, and Harper often comes into the kitchen with her nose plugged when I'm cooking, and says, "this food is stinky!"And I know this is just mac and cheese and almost every kid loves it, but Harper is usually even picky about a breadcrumb topping! So luckily she liked this one. And it makes me feel better to feed my girls something homemade rather than corn dogs all the time!

A few things to consider when making homemade mac n cheese:

1. You should use block cheese and shred it instead of buying pre-shredded. The pre-shredded just doesn't melt right and can give your cheese sauce a gritty texture.
2. Use sharp cheddar for a much better flavor. Mild or medium cheddar doesn't end up having a cheesy enough taste. I also use Gruyere in this recipe to deepen the flavor and make it seem fancy :) My mom often uses Pepperjack, and you can definitely use whatever cheeses are your favorite, but the Gruyere and sharp cheddar gives my favorite comfort food mac and cheese flavor.
3. If you bake your mac and cheese with the crumb topping, then undercook your pasta by about one minute so the pasta will stay firm after being baked. No one wants a mushy mac!

Ingredients

• 16 oz large macaroni noodles (Cavatappi noodles are my very favorite, but they can be hard to find. Get them if you can! Penne or other tube pastas work great.)
• 6  T salted butter
• 1/3 C all-purpose flour
• 3 C milk (whole is best
• 1 C heavy cream
• 4 C sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 2 C Gruyere cheese, shredded
• 1 1/2 C panko bread crumbs
• 4 T butter, melted
• 1/2 C parmesan cheese, shredded
• 1/4 t paprika
• 1/8 t garlic powder
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly spray a 13x9 baking pan or large casserole dish and set aside.
2. Boil pasta 1 minute shy of package directions. Drain, then set aside. You can drizzle a small amount of olive oil on your pasta to keep it from sticking. If you are not going to bake the mac n cheese with the crumb topping, then cook according to package directions
3. Combine the two cheeses in a bowl. Set aside
4. In a medium or large pot, melt butter.
5. Over medium heat, whisk in flour. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
6. Gradually whisk in cold milk and heavy cream until the sauce is smooth and thick. About 2-3 minutes
7. Whisk in 2 cups of cheese until smooth. Whisk in another 2 cups of cheese until smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper
8. Stir in drained pasta. Mix until all the noodles are coated in the cheese sauce.
9. Pour the macaroni mixture into prepared baking dish. Top with remaining 2 cups of cheese, and lightly stir the cheese into the noodles so it sinks down in a bit rather than sitting on top.
10. In a small bowl, mix together the panko, butter, parmesan cheese, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper until combined. Sprinkle over the top of the mac n cheese.
11. Bake in the oven for 15 or minutes until bubbly. Finish off with 2 minutes under the broiler to get a nice golden color on your topping. Enjoy!