April 5, 2012

Golden Macaroni and Cheese

Macaroni and Cheese is one of my most favorite things. The cheese, the pasta, the general gooey goodness. It's heavenly.
But there are varying levels of Mac and Cheese goodness. My calling is to find the MOST heavenly recipe out there (tough calling, I know). So far this is the winner:


This recipe hails from Southern Living Magazine and it is just all sorts of yummy. Everyone who's tasted it when I've made it has loved it, I love it, and I think you'll love it too!

Bake Time: 40-45 min.
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:
1 (8oz) package elbow macaroni (about 2 cups uncooked)
2 cups milk
1/4 all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon onion salt
2 (10oz) blocks sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 4 1/2 cups)
1 cup soft breadcrumbs
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

Directions:
1. Set oven to 350. Cook the macaroni, drain, set aside.

2. Place milk, flour, and onion salt in a quart jar or tupperware container; cover tightly, shake vigorously for 1 minute (an overactive child might enjoy this part). Be sure to get all the flour mixed in or you'll end up with clumps in the final product and that's just yucky.

3. Stir together flour mixture, 3 1/2 cups of the cheese, and the cooked macaroni. I prefer to stir it in the dish I'll be baking it in. Yes, I am that lazy.

4. Sprinkle evenly with breadcrumbs and remaining 1 cup cheese...

 then drizzle evenly with melted butter.

5. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown and scrumptious looking.

Tips:
  • It makes the drizzling of the butter much easier if you zap the butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds in a pourable liquid measuring cup.
  • Don't use store bought pre shredded cheese. The preservatives that they use to coat the cheese makes the whole thing taste bland. If you want the prep to go quicker than shred the block cheese before hand and keep in the fridge or freezer.
  • I use the tiny breadcrumbs you get at the grocery store rather than tearing up four pieces of bread for soft crumbs. It tastes just as good but takes a lot less time.
Variations:
  • Add chopped up bacon or ham to the macaroni with some on top.
  • For a little healthiness chop up some cooked broccoli and mix it in.
Fulfilling my calling in life while making others love me (well, my cooking anyways)? Oh, I Got This!

Link Partyin':

www.bluecricketdesign.net

wearethatfamily.com


shabby creek cottage

9 comments:

  1. This is a winner!! Looks and sounds heavenly to us! Thanks for sharing! We hope you'll be back to our "Strut Your Stuff Saturday". We loved having you! -The Sisters

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  2. This looks so yummy! Love the recipe.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Hope to see you on my blog:)

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    1. It is yummy! You should give it a shot and I'll check your blog out :)

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  3. Yum- pinning it now! I'm trying to find a great mac & cheese recipe. Mine always come out a little bland- but it's probably the pre-shredded cheese - I had no idea, thanks for that little tip! I found you through the Trendy Treehouse.

    -Melissa

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  4. Thank you for the pin Melissa! Hope your future Mac and Cheese making is no longer bland-ish!

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  5. wait wait wait...you mean I don't have to make a mornay sauce to do this? I mean, i love making a mornay sauce,...but...this looks super easy! Can this be done in a crockpot is my next question! yum yum!

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  6. No mornay sauce here! It is fantastically easy and oh so delicious. Haven't tried it in the crockpot yet so let me know if you do!

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  7. This sounds awesome! My daughter loves mac and cheese. I need to make this for her!

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    Replies
    1. It's hard not to love. Hope she likes it!

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