The best mac & cheese recipe?

[mscongeniality]

Its cold and I'm craving a really good rich, indulgent, comforting mac and cheese and I want to know what your fav recipes are?

I use butter and flour, add in some mustard powder and pepper and make a roux, then add milk and cook til thick. then add cheese to make a chees esauce, extra mature cheddar. Then if I have time, mix the sauce and cooked macaroni together, pour into a dish and put sliced tomatoes on top, cover with grated cheese and then grill. Some tabasco over the top when serving. Nosh.

I don't do the butter flower thing

Boil pasta

Drain
Add mascarpone, tagellio, mozzarella and Parmesan
Put in baking tray, bake till golden.

It is not good for you

only boil macaroni until very al dente, drain and into a dish

grate more cheese than you think you will need ever, ever

put at least one third cheese in with the drained pasta and shake it all about, if you have mozzarella then put blobs of that in

make a really thick sauce, with butter, flour, mustard and double cream, stir in a bit of remaining cheese then pour it all over the pasta, do not stir.

put as much bacon as it takes to cover the dish and the last of the gratedcheese on top, maybe a few breacrumbs if you like a bit of crispy gratin effect and then let it sizzle in a very hot oven for about 20 mins

if it doesn't go into the oven it is NOT mac 'n' cheese, it is stupid cheesey pasta.

It's not mac n cheese anyway....it's

Macaroni cheese

30g of flour and butter - make a roux with 400ml milk, add 200g seriously strong cheddar and plenty of black pepper (mustard if nec - I don't like it).

Meanwhile fry 100-200g smoked bacon/lardons and cook 400g pasta.

Mix all together, top with parmesan/finely grated cheddar, bake at 180 for 20 mins.

And what Gatekeeper said. Macaroni cheese.

My tips are : grainy mustard in the cheese sauce. Top with breadcrumbs and cheese and then finally sliced tomato.

Another grumpy old woman says: macaroni cheese! That is the British name. The other is a recent arrival from the US where it is most often bought in tins, packets or frozen, I believe.

The stronger the cheese, the less you will need. Mild cheddar is a waste of time in dishes like this. Go for extra mature or mature cheddar. I like to use some Double Gloucester or Red Leicester as well for the colour.

I'm Canadian, can I call it mac n cheese then?

Thank you I'm loving the cheesy goodness, the more indulgent the better!

I've tried some with the breadcrumbs topping and those are the kinds I love the most! Mmmmm

And fry some garlic in a bit of butter before making the white sauce. I've said this before but I like to add feta as well.

I'm in the roux camp.

Lovely with fried leeks stirred through, but equally lovely plain (though I tend to pay for it, whichever way)

Lorraine Pascal did a posh macaroni cheese with blue cheese. Twas amazing

Slow cooked macaroni cheese!! It is to die for.. the recipes are all the same I picked mine up from google honestly the way it cooks it's beautiful

I used to do a lovely one I got from that other mums site I darent mention here!

Carrots courgette and brocolli cooked in stock and then that stock used with milk to make up cheese sauce.... delish

Actually did mac and cheese tonight.

Flour, butter, milk in a pan, medium heat. Stir constantly till simmering, turn heat down, sauce will thicken. Add mustard and strong cheddar add small hot dog sausages

Add to cooked macaroni, stir. Black pepper.

Serve.

I'm sure it'd be even better gratinéed but I can't be arsed.

Mate, USE CREAM.

BEST MACARONI EVER. (Yes, I am shouting.)

Make roux-60g butter-melt in pan add-3tblsp flour, whisk. Pour in 250ml full fat milk. Whisk. Grate in a bit of nitmeg(NOT ESSENTIAL)Pour in 600ml cream. Whisk. Stir in 300g strong grated cheddar. Stir in 1tblsp mustard.
500g macaroni-boil for 5 min. Drain
Mix sauce & Mac together in buttered dish. Grate 100g cheddar on top.
In oven 15 mins 200C.

nUtmeg

The Hairy Bikers do a beautiful one! I made it last week and i honestly could of eaten the lot@

I love macaroni cheese but nobody else does. I fancy Kohl's with cream and Last queens' cheese fest.

Or buy some McIntosh Macaroni and Cheese and eat as is or fancy it up with bacon.

I had a brilliant one in a restaurant that had butternut squash in it, and another (same restaurant) with mushrooms and truffle oil.

When I make it:
cook pasta until al dente. Do not overcook - undercook, if anything.
Make cheese sauce with mustard, strong cheddar and other cheese if wished.
Mix together in baking dish.
Make breadcrumbs out of a white bread roll (not the crust) and mix with parmesan, more cheddar and finely chopped flatleaf parsely. Sprinkle liberally over the cheesy saucy pasta.
Grill until bubbling and golden.

Anybody who thinks broccoli or tomatoes belong anywhere near macaroni cheese, is clearly bonkers.

These are great, thanks. My dc are addicted, but mainly have ready meals (students). I'll try to get them doing some of these.

As you are Canadian I'll allow you 'mac and cheese'.

I find adding some fried onions and a hefty dollop of English mustard is the way to go. Oh, and not macaroni, rigatoni is much better, al dente and very well drained. Lots of strong cheddar and Parmesan on top before whacking it under the grill.

Absolutely no tomatoes anywhere near it.

We call it cheesy pat pat in this house and it's DS's favorite. He's only 2 and pat pat is what he calls pasta.
I do a white sauce using a roux and grate loads of cheese into it, whatever's in the fridge, so usually cheddar but Parmesan if we have it in or whatever. Added cubed ham or whatever cold meat is lying around.
Add a handful of frozen peas to the pasta towards the end of it cooking make it vaguely healthy and make me feel less guilty for giving it to DS more often than I probably should! (Such a quick easy tea though)