Best Cheese Blend For Mac And Cheese
This easy Macaroni and Cheese Casserole is super creamy with sharp cheddar & loads of cheesy sauce. Once combined, the whole dish is topped with more cheese and baked to creamy mac and cheese perfection. The BEST Homemade Mac and Cheese of your LIFE. Outrageously cheesy, ultra creamy, and topped with a crunchy Panko-Parmesan topping, this mac and cheese recipe is most definitely a keeper. I used three different cheese and a homemade cheese sauce to take this macaroni and cheese recipe over the top.
Homemade Mac and Cheese is a rich, creamy casserole that is truly a show stopper!
Not only is this creamy macaroni and cheese recipe easy to make it, has a special ingredient making it extra delicious!
This dish has so much velvety cheese in a quick homemade sauce that, once you try it, this is going to be the only baked macaroni & cheese dish you’ll ever need!
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Hello, my name is Holly and I am addicted to Macaroni and Cheese. It is literally my favorite thing to eat on the whole planet! It doesn’t even have to be fancy, I love crock pot mac & cheese, stove top mac and cheese or even out of a little blue box.
Of all of the mac and cheese recipes, *this* little gem right here is like striking mac and cheese gold. It is definitely the best mac and cheese recipe ever and always gets rave reviews! Take it from me, I definitely should know!
How to Make Homemade Mac and Cheese
Making homemade macaroni and cheese (including this 5-star recipe) is surprisingly easy and quick!
This mac and cheese casserole starts with tender macaroni noodles that are slightly undercooked so they don’t get mushy when it’s baked.
About This Mac and Cheese Sauce
The sauce for this easy homemade mac and cheese is a classic roux based cheese sauce. Roux sounds very fancy but truthfully once you make a roux, you’ll realize how easy it is! It’s just butter and flour cooked and then milk added so don’t let it scare you away!
The results of creating a roux based sauce means your macaroni and cheese is going luscious and velvety smooth every single time. This allows the cheeses to melt in evenly and perfectly for this casserole.
To add to the creaminess of this dish, I combine a little bit of milk and a little bit of light cream (I use a cream that is about 10-12%MF or half and half).
What Cheese Is Best For Mac and Cheese?
Now, this recipe has a special ingredient that is a little bit unconventional but makes it extra yummy… AND it is optional.
The addition of cheddar soup makes the sauce a little bit extra velvety and just adds a little something.
Best Cheese Blend For Mac And Cheese
Mac and cheese with Velveeta, I personally prefer to make it without! The addition of the cheddar cheese soup to this recipe is something you definitely should try! (You can find it at your local grocery store with the other condensed soups or online here).
If you don’t happen to have cheese soup on hand (or if you just don’t want to use it), this baked mac and cheese recipe is still ridiculously great without.
You might be wondering what cheese is best for mac and cheese, and it’s one with lots of flavor!
I generally use a sharp cheddar in this recipe as I love the flavor however you can certainly use your favorite cheeses in this recipe too. Sometimes I mix up the cheeses and use a bit of gruyere, or even pepperjack for a little kick. If you have bits of cheese leftover, you can combine them all together in this easy homemade mac and cheese sauce.
I would suggest buying a block of cheese and shredding it yourself as pre-shredded cheeses don’t melt the same way as they have additives to keep them from clumping/sticking.
Making Homemade Macaroni and Cheese is not difficult but below are a few simple tips to make sure it turns out absolutely perfectly every single time!
Tips to Make Creamy Mac and Cheese
- Cook your pasta al dente (firm) as the noodles cook extra in the sauce and you don’t want them mushy.
- Don’t forget to salt your pasta water.
- While not everyone agrees with rinsing the pasta after cooking, in this particular recipe it stops the noodles from cooking and the sauce is created with a texture that pairs perfectly with the rinsed noodles.
- A sharper cheddar cheese will add a stronger cheese flavor.
- Pre-shredded cheeses contain additives to keep it from sticking together which affects the way it melts. The sauce is best if you shred your own cheeses.
- Allowing the baked macaroni and cheese to rest for a few minutes after baking will thicken the sauce.
- Most importantly of all… Do not over bake this recipe.
When cooking your macaroni noodles, cook them according to the package directions but you want them to be still firm. If your package says 6-8 minutes, just cook them 6… you get the idea. I choose not to top this baked macaroni casserole with a bread crumb mixture but if you really like bread crumbs on your macaroni and cheese, by all means, add some!
How to Make a Bread Crumb Topping for Mac & Cheese
Combine the following and sprinkle over your casserole before baking.
- 3/4 cup bread crumbs (Panko Bread Crumbs are best)
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 tablespoon parsley (optional)
Best Cheese Blend For Pizza
This recipe makes an extra saucy creamy macaroni. Do not over-bake this recipe.You want it creamy and rich, over-baking will cause it to dry out.
I find that 20 minutes was perfect in my oven… note that the recipe will thicken slightly while standing.
More Macaroni Recipes You’ll Love
- Instant Pot Mac and Cheese – Super easy!
- American Goulash Recipe (Tomato, Beef and Macaroni) Crowd pleaser.
- Homemade One Pot Cheeseburger Macaroni – Easy & quick!
- Crock Pot Mac and Cheese – The BEST!
Homemade Mac and Cheese Casserole
Cook Time25minutes
Servingsservings
Cuisine American
This homemade Mac and Cheese Casserole is the best you've ever had. Tender noodles in a velvety sauce for the perfectly irresistible dish!!
Ingredients
- 12ozdry macaroni
- 1/4cupbutter
- 1/4cupflour
- 1 1/2cupsmilk
- 1cuplight creamabout 10-12% MF
- 1/2teaspoondry mustard powder
- 1teaspoononion powder
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1can condensed cream of cheddar soupoptional 10.75oz
- 4cupssharp cheddardivided
- 1/2cupfresh parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain and run under cold water.
Melt butter over medium heat in a large saucepan. Whisk in flour and let cook 2 minutes while stirring. Slowly whisk in cream, milk, mustard powder onion powder, salt and pepper to taste. Cook over medium heat while stirring until thickened.
- Remove from heat and stir in parmesan cheese & 3 cups cheddar cheese until melted. Add soup if using.
- Toss cheese sauce & macaroni noodles together. Pour into a greased 9×13 pan. Top with remaining cheese.
- Bake 18-24 minutes or until bubbly. Do not over cook. Cool 10-15 minutes before serving.
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
Keyword baked, casserole, homemade mac and cheese, macaroni and cheese
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Whoever first thought to take elbow noodles and mix them with melted cheese should be given a medal. With that one simple act they created a food that is an international delight. It is difficult to imagine a food that better than good old macaroni and cheese. During the winter the meal is hearty enough that it sticks to your ribs and helps make you feel warm even when the wind is blowing and the snow is flying. During the summer when no one seems to have enough time to cook, throwing together a batch of homemade macaroni and cheese is fast. Macaroni and cheese can either be eaten as a side dish or it can be the main entréeOne of the many great things about mac and cheese is its versatility. There are literally a hundred different ways you can make it, and each one seems to taste better than the last.
Traditionally, the cheese which is most often used for the creation of macaroni and cheese dishes is ordinary old cheddar cheese. There is absolutely nothing wrong with making your mac and cheese with cheddar cheese. There is a reason that the cheddar cheese is used for mac and cheese, and that reason is because the sharp bite of the cheddar perfectly complements the blandness of the pasta.
While cheddar cheese is nice, you won't be breaking any culinary rules if you decide to make your mac and cheese with a different type of cheese. If you are interested in trying to make a macaroni and cheese similar to what is served restaurants, you might want to swap your cheddar cheese for Gouda cheese. Cooks have discovered that the Gouda cheese tend to melt better than the cheddar, giving the macaroni and cheese a creamier texture than they get when the use cheddar If you prefer your macaroni and cheese to have a milder flavor you will want to choose a Gouda cheese that was only aged for a few weeks, however if you are interested in a strong cheese taste you will be happier with a Gouda cheese that has been aged for about a year.
When most people think of provolone, they automatically think about sandwiches. The white cheese always tastes excellent when it is stuck between two slices of bread. It will also taste just as wonderful when you use if for your favorite macaroni and cheese dish. The great thing about provolone is that it cooks really well and melts smoothly. The way that provolone melts means that every single noodle will be coated in a delicious layer of cheese.
If you have a recipe for macaroni and cheese but every time you cook it you feel like something is missing, you might want to consider swapping out whatever cheese you are currently using and replace it with smoked Mozzarella. The Mozzarella melts well, and by itself it makes for tasty mac and cheese but the smoking means that every bite of your mac and cheese will be a little explosion of flavor.
In addition to using all of these cheeses separately, you should also mix them together.
-Written by Lilly Babineau
