Genius Recipes's Notes:
Expand8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for dish Ask a question about this ingredient
6 slices good white bread, crusts removed, torn or diced into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces Ask a question about this ingredient
5 1/2 cups milk Ask a question about this ingredient
1/2 cup all-purpose flour Ask a question about this ingredient
2 teaspoons salt Ask a question about this ingredient
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg Ask a question about this ingredient
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Ask a question about this ingredient
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste Ask a question about this ingredient
4 1/2 cups grated sharp white cheddar cheese (about 18 ounces) Ask a question about this ingredient
2 cups grated Gruyere cheese (about 8 ounces) or 1 1/4 cups grated Pecorino Romano cheese (about 5 ounces) Ask a question about this ingredient
1 pound elbow macaroni (or other small pasta shape) Ask a question about this ingredient
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place bread in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter (alternately, melt butter in the microwave). Pour butter into bowl with bread, and toss. Set breadcrumbs aside. Pull out 1 1/2 cups of grated cheddar, and 1/2 cup Gruyere or 1/4 cup Pecorino Romano, and reserve.
Ask a question about this stepFill a large pot with water; bring to a boil. Add macaroni; cook 2 to 3 minutes less than manufacturer's directions, until the outside of pasta is cooked and the inside is underdone. (Different brands of macaroni cook at different rates; be sure to read the instructions.) Transfer macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Set aside.
Ask a question about this stepIn a medium saucepan set over medium heat, heat milk. In the same pot you used for boiling the pasta, melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook, whisking, 1 minute.
Ask a question about this stepWhile whisking, slowly pour in hot milk. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick.
Ask a question about this stepRemove pan from heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar cheese, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyere or 1 cup Pecorino Romano. Stir reserved macaroni into the cheese sauce.
Ask a question about this stepPour mixture into prepared dish. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Gruyere or 1/4 cup Pecorino Romano, and breadcrumbs over top. Bake until browned on top, about 30 minutes. If after 30 minutes, it's not browned to your liking, broil the topping rather than leaving it in the oven, which may cause the pasta to overcook and sauce to dry out. Transfer dish to a wire rack to cool 5 minutes; serve hot.
Ask a question about this stepI see a few comments asking why does the recipes call for rinsing the pasta. Although the starchy residue normally causes sauce to adhere better to pasta, with mac and cheese it also can contribute to a grainy texture in the sauce. Rinsing the pasta allows for a much creamier end product.
Hey! I like the site. What's your opinion on using orzo pasta for this recipe?
This is THE standard in our house...it's been made dozens of times, with one slight alteration that makes some people cringe...add about a 1/4 pound of Velveta.
Yes, I'm serious. :)
Try it, you won't be sorry...and it'll help move those that prefer that boxed stuff over to your side :)
-jb-
I made this on Saturday for 5 adults and 2 toddlers -- everyone loved it! It really is the perfect mac-and-cheese -- so creamy, cheesy, and delicious. The cubed bread on top is a great touch. I'll be adding this dish to my rotation for entertaining...it serves a crowd and can be prepped in advance. I assembled the casserole early in the afternoon, and then baked it the oven right before serving dinner.
Outstanding! It's truly creamy and doesn't dry out. I did not do the bread crumbs on top. Instead, I rendered five slices of thick-cut smoked bacon and crumbled it. I added some throughout and then reserved some to sprinkle on top. It gave it a wonderfully smoky flavor. One quibble: It did not fit in a 3-quart casserole. It needed a 4-quart _ even pre-bacon.
ok, I actually thought, no way can this recipe use all this sauce - I'm going to be clever and save some aside. A big mistake. When the mac and cheese came out of the oven looking beautiful, I could see with one big spoonful - that it was too dry. Dammit! Next time I will know better. I added the sauce that I left out, and it was good, but not the same, and too late my children were again convince that the box mac and cheese was the best... (which I won't buy, and am determined to prove them wrong!!)
Baking in the oven now! Good recipe for a cool fall dinners this week.
I cook lunches at a small school and made this Mac n Cheese Friday. I had kids waiting around for seconds even after the recess bell rang.
Sounds delicious! I'll try this tomorrow.
This is my favorite mac & cheese recipe, without a doubt. I have only made it a couple of times, since it is a bit of a production, but once you've tried the end result anything else kind of pales in comparison!
I feel like I can genuinely trust Martha in all-things-Gruyere, and this recipe proves me right once again. LOL!
I made this too this week. Excellent. I too used panko bread crumbs and a milder white cheddar.
My partner is one those that normally prefers the comfort food of Kraft Dinner for mac and cheese, instead of wild departures from the classic.
Even he loved it. There are so many mac and cheese variations out there and this one is classic and comforting.
I made this for a party a few weeks ago and it was fabulous. I usually make Patti LaBelle's Over the Rainbow Macaroni & Cheese but this one is better. I'll make this again and again and it was easy to make. The only thing I did differently was put a bit of cheese on top of my croutons and it was beautiful. There was not one bite left.
I made this last night for dinner, by far the best mac n'cheese recipe I have come across. I substitued panko bread crumbs for the croutons, and it was delicious. It makes a large pan, I froze most of it.
We made this a few months ago (NYT featured this recipes a few years ago so I save it) and it was too salty (we didn't have Gruyere and may have used more romano than is called for). My kids did NOT like the crouton topping and just peeled it off. I was disappointed in the texture as well -- it seemed a little soupy. Maybe I'll try it again with the right cheeses and no croutons.
Will also do this this week. Looking for the perfect mac & cheese is like the quest for the holy grail.
Don't want to mess up a good thing, but has anyone tried to add chunks of ham, bacon or sausage for a all-in-one casserole?
It says to rinse the pasta because she is cooling it down to stop the cooking process, so that when in the oven the pasta will absorb more of the sauce and finish cooking.
Made it yesterday morning and invited my neighbors for dinner. It was so good. The best part, I think, is the crunchiness from the crouton topping. I used a baguette and, although removing the crust was a bit of work, I loved the finished product. I felt like I had to cut the richness w/the sides so I served it with gingered beets (food 52 recipe, I think), an acidic green salad and some balsamic onions. This is going into my rotating mac 'n cheese file.
Why does it state to rinse the pasta?? You never rinse pasta... the cheese sticks better to the startch~
I have been making this recipe for at least 15 years. I make it with the romano since I buy it at Trader Joe's already grated. I use the best quality white cheddar I can find. This recipe appealed to me because many have you use grated onion or mustard powder but the Ramano or the Gruyere adds the zip instead. Everyone loves this recipe!
It is 10.30pm and i am now really hungry. Thanks for the inspiration for this week's menu.
You're not alone, ashley_s_p! Just as my search for the perfect meatloaf has not ended, the perfect mac and cheese -- the one as you so aptly put it "captures me" -- has not crossed my dinner table. This one sounds worth trying -- but so many that sounded so good have disappointed me. Let us know how you like it!
I will let you know cookbookchick! I am looking forward to making this!
Yes. I need to make mac and cheese tonight. My recipe is just like Martha's, only different. I use Monterey Jack instead of Gruyere, and usually add a generous dollop of hot tomato salsa and some extra cumin, garlic, and jalapeno pepper. Otherwise, it's identical.
I've always had to let my bechamel cool before adding the cheese or it separates. But perhaps adding hot vs. cold milk is the trick. Can't wait to try this version. Adding chopped garlic to the butter before adding the flour gives it some nice flavor too.
I am trying this tomorrow after I buy all the ingredients. I have been looking for a mac and cheese recipe that really captures me. I feel like the only one in the world that can live without it!
What about the dish in the photograph? It is shallow. Is that better?
What about the dish in the photograph? It is shallow. Is that better?
Selmelier works at Meadow, a shop that specializes in salt.
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It all starts with butter.
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And more butter. That's 2 tablespoons, melted in the microwave (shh, don't tell Martha!) drizzled over 6 slices of white sandwich bread, cubed (we used Pepperidge Farm).
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A quick toss to distribute the butter and then off to the sidelines till their big moment.
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Grate your nutmeg fresh, like so -- you'll be happy you did.
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Martha's trifecta of spices: 1/4 teaspoon each of nutmeg, black pepper and cayenne. Lots of recipes call for ground mustard too, but there's already plenty of cheesy twang in here.
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Next, par-cook the noodles -- just boil them for 3 minutes less than what the box says, since they'll finish cooking up in the sauce.
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Done! No flabby noodles here.
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Free starch on the pasta can lead to a grainy sauce, says Martha, so we rinse with cool water. This also stops them from cooking further.
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Set those noodles aside and get ready to bechamel! Hot milk and hot butter are ready for action.
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Scatter in half a cup of flour.
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Whisk it for a minute, just until you smell the flour toasting.
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Then slowly whisk in your hot milk and watch it thicken up. (Having a buddy to pour helps here.)
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About five minutes later, it will get all thick and creamy and you can add your spice trifecta.
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Then move on to stirring in cheese. And cheese and more cheese.
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Cheese sauce!
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Ohh, the cheese sauce.
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Release the macaroni!
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See how soupy it looks? That's a good thing. It means it won't dry out as the pasta finishes plumping up. Put some more cheese on it.
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Add your buttery bread cubes.
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Hit the oven.
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30 minutes later, voila!
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Call it macaroni.
Can I admit that I didn't find myself recoiling in foodie outrage at the idea of Velveeta--I was raised on the stuff (and loved it!). But still, I couldn't bring myself to buy it. What I did buy, though, was at least as good, and meets all the foodie prereqs: Italian fontina. You know, the soft, dare I say Velveeta-ish, cheese with the soft red-brown rind (never sure what to do with that rind--I always cut it off). OMG. This is the mac and cheese of my wildest dreams.