If you hate washing a bunch of dishes and like your Mac and Cheese with plenty of cheesy, creamy sauce then this One Pot Homemade Creamy Mac and Cheese is the recipe for you.
All made in one pot in less than 30 minutes.
And one more thing…no cream in the recipe! Check out the recipe to see how to make the cream (without the cream!)
It only takes about 25 total minutes from start to finish, not much longer than the boxed mac-n-cheese…but it’s homemade..and better!
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One Pot Homemade Creamy Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter
- 6 tbsp flour
- 3 cups of milk
- 2 cups of water
- 1 tsp salt
- Black pepper
- 1/2 lb of dried macaroni elbow pasta
- 2 cups grated tasty or cheddar cheese
- 1 cup grated provolone cheese
Topping
- 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs or ordinary breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1/2 tbsp fresh parsley finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Melt the butter in a deep fry pan or skillet over medium heat. Add the flour and stir until combined so a thick paste forms (“roux”). Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
- Add half the milk and use a whisk to dissolve the roux into the milk. It will thicken quickly, then add the remaining milk. Whisk in small circles, rotating around the pan, to dissolve all the roux into the milk.
- Add the water, salt and 5 grinds of pepper, then turn the heat up to medium high. Whisk leisurely so the bottom doesn’t stick to the pan. When the white sauce starts to steam and thickens such that you can see it coating the edges of the pan (around 2 to 3 minutes), add the macaroni.
- Turn the heat down to medium and stir gently with a wooden spoon to mix the macaroni through and ensure the bottom doesn’t stick. Cook it for 1 minute. Be sure not to cook it for longer than this after adding the macaroni – this really impacts the “sauciness” of the dish and ensuring the macaroni isn’t overcooked.
- Cover the fry pan, then transfer it immediately to the oven on the middle shelf.
- Bake for 12 minutes, then remove from the oven. It will seem like there is too much sauce but it reduces and thickens in the next steps. The pasta should be just cooked (al dente). It will continue cooking from the residual heat.
- Turn the oven off and turn the broiler on high.
- Stir through the cheese, just enough to disperse it through the macaroni. As you stir, this will melt the cheese and thicken the sauce. Don’t stir too much because otherwise the sauce will thicken too much due to the evaporation.
- Sprinkle over the panko and parmesan cheese, then place under the grill/broiler for a few minutes to brown.
- Remove from the broiler and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Great dish. There’s one more thing with this One Pot Homemade Creamy Mac and Cheese: Only one pot to wash!
Enjoy!
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