Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Baked Macaroni and Cheese is great comfort food. Have you ever noticed that if you cannot get your child to eat, this will not be the same problem when you offer them macaroni and cheese? Even the pickiest eaters love it and will say yes to it.
You can also add breadcrumbs to the top of the baked macaroni and cheese before placing it into the oven. It is an optional ingredient, but I most times use them, as do a lot of my friends and family members. How about you? Do you do your mac and cheese with or without the breadcrumbs?
When making classic baked macaroni and cheese, as a young girl, grandma taught me that I could make the mac and cheese creamy by cooking the pasta in milk vs water.
How to store leftover baked macaroni and cheese?
Storing leftover macaroni and cheese is easy! Just make sure to cool off the dish before transferring it into an airtight container. Place the container in the fridge and enjoy your leftovers for up to 3 days. If you’re looking for a way to switch things up, try adding some extra ingredients such as bacon or jalapenos to give your mac n’ cheese a unique twist – perfect for any home chef who loves experimenting with their recipes!
Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Equipment
- 1 5-quart pot
- 1 medium saucepan
- 1 wooden spoon
- 1 1/2 quart shallow casserole dish
Ingredients
- 1 pkg 8 oz elbow macaroni
- ¼ cup butter or margarine
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp pepper
- 2 cups milk
- 2 cups 8 oz cheddar cheese, grated
- 1 large tomato thickly sliced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. In a 5-quart pot, cook macaroni as package label directs; drain.
- Meanwhile, melt butter in medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper until smooth. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to boiling, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat, and simmer mixture 1 minute. Remove from heat.
- Stir in 1 ½ cups cheese and the macaroni. Pour into 1 ½ quart, shallow casserole dish. Arrange tomato slices over top. Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top.
- Bake 25 minnutes, or until cheese is golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition
The cheese I use mostly in my baked macaroni and cheese is cheddar cheese, but I also sometimes use parmesan or brie. If you decide to use brie in your mac and cheese, just always remember to remove the rind around the cheese before you mix it into your mac and cheese. Besides these two kinds of cheese, I also have used Monterey jack as well and was super happy at the taste of the mac and cheese and the way it looked when finished.