I now have two macaroni and cheese recipes. I always made mac and cheese in the crock pot. I love my crock pot, as you'll notice when reading some of my recipe posts. Recently, I decided to try a baked macaroni and cheese and Matt said he liked the baked version better. I love them both, so I thought I'd share both recipes.Crock Pot Macaroni & Cheese
8 oz. cooked elbow macaroni
2 TBSP. olive oil
1/8 stick melted butter
1 can of evaporated milk
1-1/2 cups milk
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
salt to taste
Grease crock pot with non-stick cooking spray.
Add all ingredients and stir. Cook on low for 3 - 4 hours.
Baked Macaroni & Cheese
8 oz. cooked elbow macaroni
2 TBSP butter
2 TBSP all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
8 oz. block sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded and divided
1. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Keep warm.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly, 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk, and cook, whisking constantly, 5 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in salt, black pepper, dry mustard, nutmeg, red pepper, 1 cup shredded cheese, and cooked pasta.
3. Spoon pasta mixture into a lightly greased 2-qt. baking dish; top with remaining 1 cup cheese.
4. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
To lighten the calorie counts of these recipes, I use reduced-fat milk and 2% reduced-fat cheese and they taste just as good.
4 comments:
Funny you should post this, Shana. Jane and I were just talking about mac and cheese last night!
I learned a great tip from the Neelys. She is the first person I've ever seen warm her milk in a pot before adding it to the flour/butter roux. HUGE difference! My mac and cheese is super creamy because I do this now. I prefer creamy mac and cheese but I know some people like a more baked, casserole-type.
I'm definitely interested in the crock pot version :)
You must post your recipe, Tammy! I'm always interested in new mac and cheese recipes!
Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. I can vouch for Shana's crockpot mac & cheese, as I've had it on several occasions and have always gone back for more. I don't think I've ever made it homemade, but must try. I love the idea of warming the milk. I told Tams last night I want to find Cheesecake Factory's recipe... holy crack. Googling...
And it's definitely a comfort food, mac & cheese kind of day, isn't it?
I made the crock pot version tonight, Shana! It was delish!! I actually doubled it so Chris could take it for lunch tomorrow and we could have leftovers. I may have used a little too much EVOO though but otherwise really, really good. Thumbs up!
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