My Ultimate Cheesy Creamy Mac & Cheese
Is there anything more comforting than a big bowl of hot cheesy, creamy macaroni and cheese? I would say no. For one, it sticks to your ribs. Secondly, we all have some sort of childhood memories of it. Whether it's a family recipe or the blue box we all grew up on. We all loved that blue box. But as we grow we start to realize the things that tasted good to us as children, isn't the best for our children. We all know the preservatives and bad stuff in the blue box. So, is there a way to replicate creamy and cheesy macaroni and cheese at home? Well, of course there is! This recipe is very easy and yields what I believe to be the ultimate in cheesy and creamy macaroni and cheese.
Sometimes things go wrong. Cheese sauces can be temperamental. Here are some ways to prevent that.
- Don't overcook the cheese. Cook it on a low to medium low setting as well.
- Stir constantly.
- Use a good quality cheese that is well known for melting. Examples include: cheddar, muenster, provolone, Velveeta, etc. All cheese brands will melt different also, so that's where you gotta kind of experiment.
- Coating the cheese with the cornstarch is what helps it break down and melt better. If you need to add more cornstarch to properly coat the cheese, then go for it.
- Grate finely. I didn't do it, but I recommend you do it. Grating with a microplane is easy and will grate really fine strands. Making it really easy to melt. Also, make sure you cube your Velveeta into ¼" pieces.
- I like to make sure all my ingredients are at room temperature.
Is there a way to fix your mac and cheese if the cheese breaks and curdles?
To reheat it or to fix the cheese separation, add a little milk or cream off the heat with a little lemon juice and give it a stir until it comes back together. It may be necessary to add it back to the heat after. Make sure to check the consistency.
HOW TO MAKE MY ULTIMATE CREAMY MAC & CHEESE:
- To start this recipe, make sure you grate all of your cheeses. You can use any type of good melting cheese. I'm using Cheddar, Velveeta and Muenster.
- It'll take longer, but I suggest you grate the cheese a little finer than I did. Also, you can see I didn't cut the Velveeta into cubes. Make sure you do.
- Next, combine all the wet ingredients, including: the egg, both milks, hot sauce and the ground mustard.
- Next, cook the macaroni elbow noodles according to the package instructions. Mine took about 8-10 minutes until al dente.
- Drain the pasta, leaving about a tablespoon of the pasta water left. Add in the butter in chunks and stir until melted over medium low heat.
- Pour in the cup of wet ingredients and add in the sour cream and stir until combined.
- Now add in the cheese all at once and stir constantly until the cheese melts on a low heat. Once all the cheese is melted, season and enjoy! You are done at this point and you definitely eat it this way if you prefer.
- Very creamy, cheesy and delicious.
- Or if you like a crust, you can top it with some breadcrumbs, some more butter and a little more cheese and sit it under the broiler for about 30 seconds to a minute. We would want to form a crust, but not necessarily bake the cheese sauce as it could break from the high heat, so be careful.
- Ooey, gooey goodness.
- Now let this sit for a few minutes before cutting into it. I know it's hard, but you have to do it.
MORE GREAT RECIPES:
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The Ultimate Cheesy Creamy Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- ½ lb elbow noodle macaroni
- 3 ounces whole milk
- 3 ounces evaporated milk
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 4 ounces Velveeta or meltable block cheese
- 4 ounces Muenster
- 8 ounces Cheddar cheese
- ½ teaspoon Franks Red Hot or any hot sauce
- ½ tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon ground mustard
- salt pepper, paprika to taste
Instructions
- Grate all your cheeses finely and place them in a bowl to the side.
Combine all your wet ingredients plus the ground mustard in one cup or bowl and stir to combine.
Toss the cornstarch with the cheese until coated lightly throughout.
Boil the noodles according to package directions. I cooked mine for 8-10 minutes until al dente.
Drain the noodles, leaving 1 tablespoon of pasta water.
Add the butter in chunks. Stir on medium-low heat until butter is completely melted.
Once butter is melted, pour in the wet mixture and the sour cream and stir to combine.
Add the cheese all at once and stir on low heat until the cheese is fully melted.
Season to taste and enjoy as is.
You can also top with breadcrumbs, butter and cheese and broil it for about a minute or so to enjoy a
crust.
