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Homemade Baked Macaroni and Cheese
For a more robust and complex flavor I like using either Tillamook’s Extra Sharp Cheddar or their Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar. photo by sgrishka Give a medal for this photo

Homemade Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Recipes »  Side Dish  »  Casseroles

Simple cheesy goodness...a true comfort food. This is the Macaroni and Cheese recipe that I grew up with. It's very easy to make, very tasty, and far better than the kind out of the box. I believe my mother may have gotten the recipe from one of her old Betty Crocker cookbooks. I like the recipe because it's so classic and so simple. Today, it's still a family favorite that we enjoy at least two or three times a month.

 "Made this tonight - wonderful recipe! Next time I will probably use half the specified cayenne, not my favorite flavor but it does add something, I wouldn't want to cut it out altogether! I also sauteed some diced garlic cloves in olive oil, and stirred them into the pasta before baking - came out well! If you're a garlic fan, I highly recommend trying it. :) The butter could easily be cut down a little as well without sacrificing anything from the dish, I think - maybe 1/2 to 2/3 of what is called for. " - NotaCylon

Yield: 6 Servings Ready in 45 minutes

Cuisine: AmericanMain Ingredient: Pasta

(4.3, 320) 82% would make again (reviews)

Favorite favorite of 14,227 people 8,603 people Try Soon want to try


Verified by stevemur

Servings          
Original recipe makes 6 Servings
2 cupsElbow macaroni; uncooked
1/2 cupButter; (1-stick)
1/4 cupAll-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoonSalt
1/4 teaspoonPepper
1/4 teaspoonDry mustard
1/8 teaspoonCayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoonWorcestershire Sauce
2 cupsMilk
2 cupsSharp cheddar cheese; (8-oz), grated

Homemade Baked Macaroni and Cheese Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente.

While macaroni is cooking, melt butter in a heavy-bottomed 3-quart saucepan over low heat. Whisk in flour, salt, pepper, mustard, cayenne and Worcestershire sauce. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly; remove from heat. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly; remove from heat. Stir in cheese and cook, stirring occasionally, until cheese is melted.

Drain macaroni and gently stir into cheese sauce. Pour into ungreased 2-quart casserole. Bake uncovered until bubbly, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for five minutes before serving.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Notes

It makes a great side dish, especially for fried chicken, chops, meatloaf, or my favorite...salmon patties.

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  • photo by omerguy omerguy

  • Taste so good and it was easy to make photo by Donatello Donatello

  • photo by akmacpheedrake akmacpheedrake

  • photo by akmacpheedrake akmacpheedrake

  • photo by kmungall kmungall

  • photo by kmungall kmungall

  • photo by Haslett331 Haslett331

  • I put colby jack, swiss, sharp cheddar, grated parmesan cheese and bread crumbs on top. photo by myraclesmommy711 myraclesmommy711

  • I added ham to mine and breadcrumbs on top! photo by Louise2247 Louise2247

  • photo by Kelhead Kelhead

  • So delicious! photo by jenika29 jenika29

  • photo by Deanna624 Deanna624

  • photo by Chibabe26 Chibabe26

  • photo by BabyMama2012 BabyMama2012

  • photo by megster09 megster09

  • photo by tysondballard tysondballard

  • Yum! photo by Joonbugg702 Joonbugg702

  • Using 1/2 whole wheat, 1/2 regular macaroni pasta. photo by kevinlee1 kevinlee1

  • Double Batch photo by SomeRandomGuy SomeRandomGuy

  • photo by mogriff1 mogriff1

  • photo by EHarknett22 EHarknett22

  • photo by EHarknett22 EHarknett22

  • photo by Telln Telln

  • photo by Hereliesjake Hereliesjake

  • photo by devancpatel devancpatel

  • my kids loved it i also put in some bacon bits photo by ddsickels ddsickels

  • For a more robust and complex flavor I like using either Tillamook’s Extra Sharp Cheddar or their Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar. photo by sgrishka sgrishka

  • I like to leave it in the oven a little longer until the top is browned and the edges get a little crispy. photo by sgrishka sgrishka

  • Homemade Baked Macaroni and Cheese Photo by ? photo by  

  • There were two of us eating the Mac and Cheese ... It was all gone the same night! Talk about guilty pleasure ... Yum! Photo by ItsMyHorns photo by ItsMyHorns ItsMyHorns

    • Calories Per Serving: 622
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    Homemade Baked Macaroni and Cheese Reviews

    Give it a rating Would you make it again?   [please sign in to add your comment]
    1 days, 7 hours, 33 minutes ago
    It was a favorite with the kids. I used the medium shell pasta instead because I was feeding a big group & that's all I had..
    1 days, 19 hours, 4 minutes ago
    Yummy everytime nothing bland about it
    1 days, 22 hours, 52 minutes ago
    3 days, 2 hours, 18 minutes ago
    Love your recipes sgrishka! Husband loves everything I try from your list. He can't have strong cheeses so I used medium cheddar, montyjack, and pepperjack. Also I'm terrible at measuring so everything ends up being a guess-ti-mation. :) Mac'n cheese looks wonderful and the recipe posted is very tasty. Like others I love to experiment and change things up. I used olive oil not butter, added crushed mustard seed not ground, yellow mustard from the bottle, extra Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, dried onion flakes, and bread crumbs. I totally forgot the broccoli before I put it in the oven! Drats!
    1 weeks, 1 days, 18 hours, 2 minutes ago
    Awesome!!! This recipe is a keeper!
    3 weeks, 20 minutes ago
    3 weeks, 5 days, 19 hours, 59 minutes ago
    3 weeks, 6 days, 20 hours, 42 minutes ago
    Great recipe! I added garlic powder, onion powder and omitted the salt.
    1 months, 1 weeks, 2 days, 15 hours, 59 minutes ago
    1 months, 1 weeks, 6 days, 16 hours, 37 minutes ago
    1 months, 2 weeks, 2 days, 24 minutes ago
    1 months, 2 weeks, 3 days, 5 hours, 22 minutes ago
    Added a little extra salt and it was perfect! Thanks for your amazing recipes (:
    1 months, 2 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, 57 minutes ago
    1 months, 3 weeks, 1 hours, 50 minutes ago
    Yummy
    1 months, 3 weeks, 17 hours, 54 minutes ago
    Very bland :-( other than that it was an easy recipe.....just need to figure out how to combat the bland lol!! If I can do that my kids will love it!
    1 months, 3 weeks, 2 days, 15 hours, 39 minutes ago
    The only complaint is it was a little gritty/powdery BUT after reheating as leftovers the powdery taste was GONE. Maybe it should cook longer?
    1 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 2 hours, 59 minutes ago
    2 months, 1 weeks, 19 minutes ago
    This is my goto for mac & cheese. Its perfect everytime
    2 months, 3 weeks, 21 hours, 14 minutes ago
    Sounds good right? My daughter made it by herself and later I had some...WOW so good!
    2 months, 3 weeks, 21 hours, 33 minutes ago

    Tags

    1. Best Pasta
    2. Comforting
    3. Fall
    4. Worcestershire sauce
    5. American
    6. Pasta
    7. Side Dish
    8. easy
    9. cheese
    10. milk
    11. cayenne
    12. dry mustard
    13. AP flour
    14. butter
    15. macaroni
    16. Bake
    17. DQZnlYsUtitmYK

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