Mac n Cheese

Ingredients

  • 1 lb pasta
  • 4 oz butter (1 stick)
  • 4 oz all-purpose flour
  • 1.5 cp whole milk
  • 2.5 cp half-n-half
  • 4 cp medium sharp cheddar cheese, divided TODO convert to weight
  • 2 cp gruyere cheese, divided TODO convert to weight
  • 1/2 tbsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • olive oil

Equipment

  • baking dish
  • large saucepan
  • large bowl

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325 F
  2. Grease 9x13” baking dish
  3. Boil pot of salted water. Cook pasta to 1 minute less than al dente directions.
  4. Drain pasta and drizzle with a little olive oil to prevent sticking.
  5. While water is coming to boil, grate cheeses and toss to combine.
  6. Divide cheese to 3 cp for sauce, 1.5 cp for inner layer, 1.5 cp for topping.
  7. Melt butter in saucepan over MED heat, sprinkle in flour and whisk to create a roux. Cook for 1 minute.
  8. Slowly pour in 2 cp of half-n-half while whisking. Then slowly pour in remaining half-n-half and milk.
  9. Continue heating and constantly whisking until the consistency of semi-thinned condensed soup. Should coat the back of a spoon.
  10. Stir in spices and and the 3cp of cheese in a couple of handfuls while stirring in between, until completely melted.
  11. In a large bowl, combing sauce and pasta.
  12. layer the baking dish with:
    1. half pasta/sauce mixture
    2. 1.5 cp cheese
    3. half pasta/sauce mixture
    4. 1.5 cp cheese topping
  13. Bake until cheese is bubbly and lightly golden brown, approximately 15 minutes.

If creating in bulk for large event, it’s ok to substitute the gruyere with 100% cheddar.

Preparing the Day Before

Complete all directions until putting into the oven. Instead cover the baking dish and place in fridge. On the day of, bake for 25-35 minutes.

References