For two large servings follow a six, six, six rule: six ounces of pasta, six ounces of evaporated milk, and six ounces of shredded cheese. This dish works best if you use equal proportions of each ingredient. If you want to keep it traditional, a mild cheddar will do, but if you want to get a bit creative, try Fontina, Jack, Gruyere, or a combination of any of these melting cheeses you like. Because the sauce is so thick, it needs a stout noodle to stand up to it.Įvaporated milk: Evaporated milk is a staple, and the kind you use doesn’t matter much here, so whatever you have on hand is fine.Ĭheese: The cheese is the star in this dish, so choosing a high-quality melting cheese is important.
Using a short noodle like a shell or elbow works best in a dish like mac and cheese (hence the name). Pasta: When you’re cooking a dish with so few ingredients, especially for a festivity like Thanksgiving dinner, it’s essential to use only the best. In other words, the evaporated milk will keep your sauce from separating. Protein micelles help form and maintain an emulsion (which is what you are creating by mixing water and cheese) stable. Rather than cooking the pasta in milk like many mac and cheese recipes call for, use evaporated milk instead because it contains protein micelles.The limited volume of water concentrates the starch from the pasta, which turns the cheese into a creamy sauce. Cooking the pasta in the smallest amount of water possible is essential.A few tips before we get into the process to set the stage for the perfect pot of mac and cheese: But, the key to this recipe from Serious Eats is more about the technique than the number of ingredients. Any more would have been too much.You may be skeptical that a three-ingredient dish, especially an indulgent one like mac and cheese, can be successful. Oh, wow! It’s great glad I omitted the salt (I did salt the water that I cooked the pasta in) in the white sauce. What can I say…I just cannot ever leave a good recipe alone.
Also added a modest amount of cracked black pepper to the white sauce. I forgot to put any salt in the white sauce but with the bacon grease and cheese, suspect it will be adequately salted. I used 2 1# boxes of pasta and enough white sauce to fill the dish well, had to use deli-sliced sharp Cheddar and Monterey-Jack. I’m SO anxious to see if it turns out well. For the crumbs, I used a combination of gluten-free Italian spiced in 50/50 combo with fine crumbs from homemade white bread that was going to go stale, so I toasted and crumbed the slices.
The only thing I ‘tweaked’ was the butter I used some bacon drippings instead of all butter because I was short on one and had some of the other. I came online to *try* to find a recipe like my mother’s but with no success so used yours.
I can go on, and on… but just watch the video below, and see how creamy and cheesy this macaroni and cheese is for yourself! Don’t forget to share this mac and cheese casserole recipe on Facebook & Pinterest! Check out my video tutorial on how to make this deliciously creamy southern baked macaroni and cheese casserole! Make sure you’re subscribed to my YouTube channel and never miss a recipe upload. and walks away…) I’m not playing y’all!Īnd guess what?! I only use two different cheese in this recipe! Two EASY TO FIND cheeses!! No more searching for hard to find cheeses, I got you covered with this one. This macaroni and cheese casserole is the creamiest, cheesiest, best ever macaroni and cheese recipe. HOWEVER, I’m about to blow your minds with this right here southern baked macaroni and cheese casserole recipe! And the soul food macaroni and cheese has been a holiday favorite since I dropped it. I know a lot of you LOVE my southern baked macaroni and cheese recipe, while others swear by my slow cooker macaroni, and cheese. I always get asked which macaroni and cheese recipe I like best, but honestly – I love ALL my macaroni and cheese recipes! If you ask me they are all the bomb, like seriously. There’s just something about creamy cheesy macaroni and cheese that I can’t resist. I guess it’s safe to say that macaroni and cheese is definitely one of my favorite dishes. I’ve shared so many! I have a southern baked macaroni and cheese recipe, a slow cooker mac and cheese, stovetop macaroni and cheese, and even a soul food macaroni and cheese. Southern style macaroni and cheese casserole, smothered in a homemade creamy cheese sauce, and layered with tons of cheese!īy now you know I am the queen of macaroni and cheese recipes.