| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 5 min |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Cook: | 45 min |
| Yield: | 6 to 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound elbow macaroni
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 tablespoon powdered mustard
- 3 cups milk
- 1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 large egg
- 12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Fresh black pepper
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente.
- While the pasta is cooking, in a separate pot, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and mustard and keep it moving for about five minutes. Make sure it’s free of lumps. Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, and paprika. Simmer for ten minutes and remove the bay leaf.
- Temper in the egg. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Fold the macaroni into the mix and pour into a 2-quart casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.
- Melt the butter in a saute pan and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and rest for five minutes before serving.
- Remember to save leftovers for fried Macaroni and Cheese.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 8 servings |
| Calories | 465 |
| Total Fat | 27 g |
| Saturated Fat | 16 g |
| Carbohydrates | 36 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Sugar | 6 g |
| Protein | 19 g |
| Cholesterol | 97 mg |
| Sodium | 471 mg |
Reviews
I’ve made this mac and cheese recipe many, many times with the onions and without (prefer it without), and it doesn’t disappoint. However, flavor-wise, I prefer Martha Stewart’s version of mac and cheese with the gruyere, sharp white cheddar, breadcrumbs, etc.
Super grainy. Somehow not cheesy! We were super bummed!
This recipe confounds me. I saw this show when it first aired. At least 20 years ago. I loved it. Always turned out great, for first decade.
Except, last 8-10 years, it comes out grainy. No, I don’t use preshredded cheese. I rarely make it anymore… it’s like I’m doomed. But I try every two years or so. Tried tonight… dry and grainy. No deviation from recipe that used to yield excellent results.
Very confused.
My husband and I loved toe recipe. I did caramel ice my onions for extra flavor. I used 8oz sharp cheddar, 3oz Gouda and 1oz Parmesan. The cheese sauce was spectacular and I had extra noodles so I put the sauce on them. So creamy and good but when I cooked the Mac and cheese it was sooo gritty. Can anyone tell me why?
Vera J
Vera J
This is truly the best Mac & cheese recipe on the foodnetwork site! ( I’ve tried lots of them).I used 3/4’s extra old cheddar and 1/4 mozzarella plus a sprinkle parmesan.I do not spread bread crumbs over it.. but real- crumbled bacon – it’s been at least 5 yrs that I have played with this recipe..try it you won’t be disappointed, it’s the best on this site.
This turned great for me. Don’t go cheap on the cheese, you need to use a quality cheddar.
Delicious and easy
Yes, this is my go-to recipe for BM&C. God Bless Alton Brown! (should he exist). I can make this one in my sleep, scaled up or down, and have had success with many tweaks. For the lower fat version, I put my foot down at 1% milk. There’s a negligible difference in fat per serving when using skim vs. 1%. In fact, I usually go with 1% unless I’m serving foodies. I don’t keep whole milk around, but keep heavy cream and 1% milk (organic on all the dairy or Kerrigold for cheese and/or butter). the one time I was coerced into using skim, I made two batches and the 1% was a very noticeable difference. This may only apply to organics because the taste of the milkfat in organic is just so much better than the nasty milk from hormone and antibiotic-injected cows that eat some wretched, low-cost, feed formulated from genetically engineered grains. For those who say they can’t taste the difference, you have no palette.
To make sure the onions are cooked down enough., I throw them into the roux first for a minute and slowly add the milk in to keep the temperature up. This is a simple dish, but it’s best to prep so that you can keep the mix moving and prevent separation. It also is so much easier if you prep. Some dishes you can do on the fly, but this one belongs to the set of prep first. I usually do one of the many mentioned add-ins, but the seafood ones are my favorite.
Best Mac and Cheese! I decreased the salt to 1/2 tsp kosher salt, which was perfect. Also substituted skim milk for whole and it was still creamy and delicious and a sweet onion to tone down the onion flavor. Made it all in a Dutch oven and then transferred to a casserole dish before baking. I agree with another reviewer that the pinko bread crumbs made this dish extra special. You just can’t go wrong with this recipe!
I haven’t made this in years. I got cheese on sale (we like to use mixed cheeses/cheese ends) and thought I had panko. Alas, no panko. I had to use crushed cheez its instead. I was not disappointed lol. And definitely try to save a serving to fry later. Yum