Secret Ingredient Creamy Mac n Cheese

Secret Ingredient Creamy Mac and Cheese recipe is the ultimate, cheesy pasta dinner. This comfort food recipe is perfect for a family meal, cozy date night, or special occasion. Although this creamy mac n cheese casserole is baked, it’s not a custard mac and cheese. It’s simply baked to marry the ingredients and crisp the topping. First, let me tell you what this Mac and Cheese recipe is not… It is not loaded with weird ingredients. As well, it doesn’t have ham, chicken, ground beef, or any added meat. It doesn’t have kale, spinach, peas, tomatoes, or any ingredient that makes it ‘healthier’. What this Macaroni and Cheese recipe is… It is creamy. It has a buttery, crunchy topping. And, it is decadent and amazing and delicious and sumptuously wonderful! It is full of gooey cheese. It is classic comfort food. This is a special recipe! 😋 SECRET INGREDIENT CREAMY MAC AND CHEESE First, I don’t want to be all secretive and ‘click-bait-ish’ with my secret ingredient title. Although uncommon, I’m probably not the only one to ever add these special ingredients to mac and cheese. Furthermore, there’s actually more than one secret, or ‘special’, ingredient to my recipe. Here they are. THE SECRET TO GOOD MAC AND CHEESE Remember fat is flavor and cheese is flavor so you won’t have good mac and cheese unless those two ingredients, butter and cheese, are flavorful. Therefore, I recommend using real butter (salted or unsalted, your choice) not margarine. Furthermore, I recommend a good quality, name-brand (not generic) sharp cheddar cheese. So you say you don’t like sharp cheddar? Well, the sharpness is diluted in this recipe by the pasta, milk, and heavy cream. Therefore, I still recommend sharp cheddar. HOW TO FIX BLAND MAC AND CHEESE HOW TO MAKE CREAMY MAC & CHEESE There’s basically three steps to my macaroni and cheese recipe. First, cook the pasta. Or, I should say uncook the pasta. Cook pasta for mac and cheese slightly undercooked or just before al dente. This will keep the pasta from completely falling apart once it’s stirred into the cheese sauce and cooked some more. Next, while you’re pasta is cooking you can start the cheese sauce. You make a roux with butter and flour. Next, you add milk and heavy whipping cream. After that mixture thickens slightly you’ll add cheese and stir it until it melts. Finally, put the pasta in the cheese sauce, top with croutons, and bake until all the yummy ingredients are melted together and wonderful! And, it’s just that simple! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Please consider leaving a 5-star rating and comment. Secret Ingredient Creamy Mac and Cheese recipe This ever-popular classic comfort food recipe is creamy and flavorful! 5 from 1 voteFOR THE PASTAFOR THE CHEESE SAUCEFOR THE TOPPINGPreheat oven to 350°F. In a large pot cook the pasta to al dente (according to the package instructions). Remove the pasta from the heat and drain. Place back in the pan and drizzle with olive oil. Stir to coat. Allow to pasta to cool while you’re preparing the cheese sauce.FOR THE CHEESE SAUCECombine shredded cheeses in a large bowl and set them aside.Spray a large 3-quart or 4-quart baking dish or braiser pan with non-stick cooking spray. I use a braiser pan that goes from stovetop to oven (which means one less pot to clean!)Melt the butter in your large pan/pot. Whisk in flour and over medium heat continue whisking for about 1 minute. You want it to become bubbly and golden. Gradually whisk in the milk and heavy then stir until it’s smooth. Continue cooking and whisking until there are small bubbles on the surface. Once you see these bubbles cook for another 2 minutes. Add salt, pepper, hot sauce, cream cheese, and shredded cheese. Whisk until the cheese melts and the mixture is smooth and slightly thick.Stir in the pasta and stir until the pasta is incorporated with the cheese sauce. Pour into your baking dish (or if you used an oven-safe pan simply add the crushed croutons mixture to the top.)FOR THE TOPPINGIn a small bowl, combine crushed croutons, Parmesan cheese, and melted butter. Sprinkle over the top and bake until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediatelyCalories: 505kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 768mg | Potassium: 233mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 950IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 415mg | Iron: 1mg Course dinner, Side DishKeyword cheese, mac and cheese, macaroni, macaroni and cheese, pasta