There’s nothing like the down home goodness of homemade macaroni and cheese. The boxed products are fine once in a while, but nothing compared to using real cheese, real seasonings, and baked in the oven with a nice crust and all the gooey goodness of the real cheese. This is an easy recipe for classic country style baked macaroni and cheese and it uses real cheese in a thick and creamy sauce which is then added to cooked elbow macaroni, covered in breadcrumbs, and baked to deliciousness!
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Serves: 4-6
Classic country baked macaroni and cheese recipe.
Ingredients
- 2½ cups whole milk
- 1½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 lb uncooked elbow macaroni
- 1 bay leaf
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
- Bring a large pot of water to boil and add macaroni. Cook macaroni slightly under for about 5 minutes - you don't want it completely done. Drain, rinse and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, add milk and bay leaf and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes (until bubbles form). Turn off heat and let stand.
- In another small saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Once butter is foamy, add flour and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Mixture will be browned when done.
- Slowly add about ¼ of the hot milk mixture to the butter/flour saucepan. Pour in very slowly while vigorously whisking the mixture. Continue adding all the milk and stirring until it's a smooth creamy texture.
- Add cheddar cheese to the creamy mixture and mix some more until you have a delicious looking creamy cheese sauce.
- Add Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and onion powder to mixture and stir for 1 minute.
- Using a 13 x 9 glass baking pan, add cooked macaroni and cheese sauce and mix together well. Top with breadcrumbs and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
