Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese
This easy-to-make Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese is simply the best. Tender pasta blended with four kinds of cheese, topped with crispy buttery crumbled crackers and bacon pieces, then baked to perfection.
Servings: 8
Calories: 1138kcal
Ingredients
- 1 pound elbow pasta
- ½ cup 1 stick + 3 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 2 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
- 12 ounces sharp cheddar cheese grated
- 8 ounces jalapeno gouda cheese grated
- 8 ounces American cheese grated
- 8 ounces Havarti cheese grated
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 cup 1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed
- Bacon for garnish
- Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Bring water to a boil in a large pot, adding elbow pasta and cooking for 1 minute less than directed on the packaging. Drain the pasta and drizzle with olive oil to prevent sticking.
- While waiting for the water to boil/the pasta to cook, grate all of the cheeses. Toss together to mix and then separate into 3 bowls.
- Melt ½ cup of butter in the saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the flour and whisk to combine, cooking for about 1 minute.
- Slowly pour in the milk and heavy whipping cream, whisking constantly.
- Continue to whisk over medium until the mixture becomes thick.
- Remove from heat and add one of the bowls of cheese mix, whisking to combine.
- Mix the dry mustard, salt, ground black pepper, and cayenne pepper into the cheese sauce.
- In a large bowl, combine the drained elbow pasta with the cheese sauce, stirring to combine.
- Pour half of the pasta in a greased 9x13 baking dish. Top with the second bowl of mixed cheeses. Pour the remaining pasta on top of cheese and top with the final bowl of cheeses.
- Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and mix with the crushed Ritz crackers.
- Top with the Ritz cracker mixture and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the cheeses are bubbling. Garnish with parsley and/or bacon, if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
If you plan to freeze your homemade creamy mac and cheese, skip the part about the butter/crushed cracker topping. Instead, complete that step just before you bake it.
Before you freeze your mac and cheese, consider how you might like to serve it – as one big casserole for the family. Small ramekins are great as single-serving containers that go from the freezer to the fridge to the oven to the table. Smaller portions tend to cook faster, so change your cooking time to 10-15 minutes.
Stir in some sliced, grilled chicken just before baking to make this a protein-packed dinner.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 1138kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 42g | Fat: 82g | Saturated Fat: 50g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 267mg | Sodium: 1694mg | Potassium: 401mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 2627IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 1103mg | Iron: 2mg