Homemade Mac and Cheese
Growing up, I never really had the experience of having mac and cheese on the menu at home. (Menu, lol, like I had options). It was an oddity I came across a few times by rare happenstance. And then when I moved out on my own, it became a regular staple. It was affordable, easy to make, and went well with seared pork chops.
Since looking to increase my culinary skills, I decided to add mac and cheese to the menu. Because, yes, as an adult, I have options.
Ingredients
For the cheese sauce
- 2 tablespoons of all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons of butter
- 2 cups of milk
- 2 cups of cheese ( I used pepper jack and medium sharp cheddar)1 green onion
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (optional)
Pasta
1 cup of De Cecco Cavatappi no. 87
Instructions
I cooked the pasta according to the instructions on the box. For the cheese sauce, I melted the butter in a sauce pan on medium heat, once melted, I added in the flour and cooked for about 2-3 minutes to get out that flour taste. While I was doing that, I was heating the 2 cups of milk in a separate sauce pan. Once my roux was properly cooked, I slowly added in my heated milk. Once all the milk had been added, I seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, smoked paprika and cayenne pepper for some heat.
Once the béchamel sauce thickened, I cut the heat and slowly added in my cheese mixture one handful at a time. Allowing each handful to melt completely before adding in the next handful. I added my pasta to the cheese, mixed thoroughly to ensure the cheese got into all those nook an crannies of the cavatappi and then served in a bowl garnished with bacon bits, green onions, and toasted panko crumbs.
Enjoy!
