All American Macaroni Cheese Food

ULTIMATE MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cook macaroni in large saucepan as directed on package for al dente pasta. Rinse under cold water; drain well.
• Melt butter in same saucepan on medium heat. Sprinkle with flour and seasonings. Cook and stir 2 minutes or until well blended. Gradually stir in milk until smooth. Stirring constantly, cook 3 minutes or until sauce starts to thicken. Stir in cheese until melted and smooth. Remove from heat. Add macaroni; toss gently to coat. Pour into greased 13x9-inch baking dish. Mix panko and paprika; sprinkle evenly over top.
• Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown on top. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

AMERICAN MACARONI SALAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the macaroni, celery, onion, parsley and tomato, if using. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, sugar, vinegar, sour cream and salt. Pour the dressing over the salad and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve. Store covered in the refrigerator, for up to 3 days.

THE BEST STOVETOP MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain.
• Melt the butter in the same pot over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, mustard powder and paprika; cook, whisking constantly, until smooth and slightly darker, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the milk and continue to cook, whisking occasionally, until the sauce thickens slightly and comes to a simmer, 7 to 8 minutes. Whisk in the cheddar, American cheese and cream cheese until melted and remove from heat.
• Add the pasta to the sauce; toss, adding some reserved cooking water as needed to loosen. Season with salt.

ALL-AMERICAN MACARONI & CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• While making cheese mixture, cook macaroni per package instructions. Drain and set aside.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter.
• Cook onion and garlic in butter until translucent.
• Add flour to saucepan and stir to combine, leaving no dry flour bits.
• Add milk all at once to saucepan along with black pepper. Stir to combine. Stir constantly until mixture begins to thicken.
• Stir in cheeses one at a time until melted, and mixture is smooth.
• Place cooked macaroni in a 1-quart casserole dish. Stir in cheese mixture until combined.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until top is lightly browned.
• Cool for 10 minutes and serve.

CHEF JOHN'S MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, stir in the macaroni, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is cooked through but still slightly firm, about 8 minutes. Drain well.
• Melt 1/4 cup butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. When the butter starts to foam and bubble, stir in the flour; cook on medium heat until flour just begins to turn pale yellow, 3 to 4 minutes. Add thyme, cayenne pepper, and white pepper; cook and stir another minute, then whisk in 1 cup of milk until smooth. Pour in remaining milk and whisk again. Bring the sauce just to a simmer.
• Stir in nutmeg, Worcestershire sauce, and salt; simmer on medium-low heat until thickened, about 8 minutes, whisking often. Turn heat off, then add 2 1/4 cups of Cheddar cheese; stir until melted and combined. Add Dijon mustard.
• Transfer the macaroni into a casserole dish, then pour in the cheese sauce; stir to thoroughly combine sauce with pasta. Mix panko bread crumbs and 1 tablespoon melted butter in a small bowl, and sprinkle crumbs on top of macaroni and cheese. Sprinkle remaining 3/4 cup of Cheddar cheese on top.
• Bake in the preheated oven until bread crumbs and Cheddar cheese topping are golden brown, about 20 minutes.

GEORGIA MACARONI WITH AMERICAN CHEESE

Steps:

• Boil 4 cups of salted water and add the macaroni; cook 8 minutes, or until done; Drain macaroni and set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, melt butter over LOW heat.
• Add cheese slices, one by one, until all are melted through, and cheese is smooth.
• Stir in the canned milk, more or less to your desired consistency.
• Add drained macaroni to cheese mixture; add salt and pepper to taste, and mix well until coated.
• Serve immediately.

SIMPLE MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, 8 minutes. Drain.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat; stir in flour, salt, and pepper until smooth, about 5 minutes. Slowly pour milk into butter-flour mixture while continuously stirring until mixture is smooth and bubbling, about 5 minutes. Add Cheddar cheese to milk mixture and stir until cheese is melted, 2 to 4 minutes.
• Fold macaroni into cheese sauce until coated.

THE GREAT AMERICAN MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Combine grated Cheddar and mozzarella and set aside.
• In a small saucepan, heat milk until near boiling. Turn off heat. Melt butter in a heavy pan large enough to hold the pasta after it is cooked. (It will take at least a 14-inch saute pan or a large casserole that can take direct heat.) When foam from butter recedes, remove from heat, add flour, and mix well. Return to medium-low heat, and, stirring occasionally, simmer for 2 to 3 minutes to cook, but not brown, the flour. Gradually stir in hot milk. Raise heat to medium-high and continue stirring until mixture is smooth and thick (about 5 minutes). Add Parmesan and Romano cheeses. Whisk until smooth. Add Tabasco and white pepper and blend.
• Cook rigatoni in boiling salted water about 4 minutes. (It will be underdone, but will finish cooking later.) Thoroughly drain rigatoni and fold it into the cheese mixture.
• If cooking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Layer one-half the rigatoni mixture into a 9x13 pan. Top with one-half of the Cheddar and mozzarella. Repeat layers. Top with chili powder, sprinkled evenly over top.
• If not baking immediately, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze. When ready to bake, drizzle the 3/4 cup milk over the dish. Bake for approximately one hour. If frozen, add at least 20 minutes to baking time. The dish should be rusty brown on top. Should it appear to be browning too fast, cover with foil for part of cooking time. Be sure to check for doneness in the very center of the dish.

ALL AMERICAN MACARONI AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to directions on package. Drain.
• While the pasta is draining, put the butter into the pot that you cooked the pasta in and melt over very low heat.
• Return pasta to the pot and stir to coat with the butter.
• Add cheese, egg, and evaporated milk; stir until smooth.
• ENJOY!

MOM'S MACARONI & CHEESE

Steps:

• Cook macaroni until ala dente.
• Melt cheese and milk to make a cheese sauce, I do this in the microwave at 50% power. Save 6 slices of cheese for top of casserole.
• Mix the macaroni and cheese and put into a 4 quart casserole that has been sprayed with a nonstick cooking spray.
• Put the 6 slices of cheese on top of casserole and then top with bread crumbs and put pats of butter on top of that.
• Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until browned and bubbly.