Life doesn’t get any better than when you’re faced with a bowl of the most incredible homemade mac and cheese on the planet. That’s a fact. It’s time to forget about the woes of everyday life. About the job that stinks. About the kitchen budget that just went bust. About the nasty head cold and sore throat. Your week probably shaped up to be different than mine did last week but while the circumstances are probably different, we all deal with life’s crap. And as a reward for dealing with said crap, it’s time to belly up to a bowl of this mac and cheese. You won’t be sorry.
A perfect blend of sharp cheddar and gruyere melted into a luscious white béchamel sauce makes this mac and cheese everything I’ve ever wanted in this classic dish. The recipe yields way more cheese sauce than you think it should but the sauce finds its way into all of the nooks and crannies of the basic elbow macaroni and even after baking, leaves you with the creamiest baked mac and cheese ever. Yes, ever.
If you’re not familiar with croutons on top of your mac and cheese, get used to it because after trying Martha’s version, you’ll never go back to breadcrumbs. Cubed white bread gets tossed with melted butter and the oven bakes up the bread right on top of the mac and cheese – there’s no extra step to browning them like croutons! The result is a topping of buttery croutons over creamy mac and cheese. It’s pure heaven. I made Martha’s recipe exactly as written (except that I halved the recipe and had no issues at all with the measurements) and wouldn’t change a single thing the next time I make it. Somethings are better left untouched. This mac and cheese recipe is one of them.
Let’s talk cheese for a quick second and add in some fun stuff.. The recipe calls for sharp cheddar and gruyere and I don’t suggest you change this mix. The cheddar melts beautifully as does the gruyere but the gruyere also adds a little nuttiness…or earthiness…to this mac and cheese. It’s an amazing combination. Go for the best cheddar you can afford. I purchased mine while in Vermont last week (though any block of good white cheddar – not pre-shredded! – will work with this recipe) when Kyle and I met up with Annie and Ben. We hit the Grafton Village Cheese Company for a cheese tasting, took a walk around the quaint and sleepy Grafton Village, and had a warm and cozy lunch next door to the cheese shop. It was seriously so fabulous to finally, after nearly 5 years of being friends online and through our blogs, meet up and hang out! You can bet that we’re already planning another get together soon! I’ve got some additional photos of our trip to Lake George and VT in my Flickr photostream if you feel like checking them out.
Martha Stewart’s Perfect Mac and Cheese
source: Martha Stewart found via TheKitchn and Food52
Ingredients:
- 6 slices good-quality white bread, crusts removed, torn or diced into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for dish
- 5 1/2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar
- 2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated Gruyere or 1 1/4 cups (about 5 ounces) grated pecorino Romano
- 1 pound elbow macaroni
Instructions:
- Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place bread pieces in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour butter into the bowl with bread, and toss. Set the bread pieces aside. In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, heat milk. Melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.
- Slowly pour hot milk into flour-butter mixture while whisking. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick.
- Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyere or 1 cup pecorino Romano. Set cheese sauce aside.
- Fill a large saucepan with water. Bring to a boil. Add macaroni; cook 2 to 3 fewer minutes than manufacturer’s directions, until outside of pasta is cooked and inside is underdone. (Different brands of macaroni cook at different rates; be sure to read the instructions.) Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Stir macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar and 1/2 cup Gruyere or 1/4 cup pecorino Romano; scatter bread pieces over the top. Bake until browned on top, about 30 minutes. Transfer dish to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes; serve hot.
Serves 12.
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
‘Tis the season for comfort food! This looks wonderful!
This sounds so awesome!
Ok, that looks absolutely amazing! It resembles an alfredo sauce before being baked! Definitely going on my meal plan for the first week of November!!!! And I feel your pain, we all have a nasty cold in this house. Yuck!
That looks amazing! I’m starting to hit ‘panic mode’ with all the things I need to get done for my grad school classes this semester. I bet a big bowl of mac and cheese would really help with that!
Normally I prefer a stove top mac and cheese over baked because they are generally cheesier. But this one really might be the ultimate!
Personally I hate the blue box mac n cheese-what usually makes that this great is the quality of cheese. This baked version with real cheese does look very enticing and I like the touch of the bread pieces over the top. Thanks for sharing this one.
Oh my good gracious, this looks ah-mazing.
I don’t need to be in a swimsuit for like seven more months anyway
This recipe sounds amazing and I love your pictures!
wow! this looks so cheesy. i love it.
You little huzzies – gallavanting around Vermont. Glad you gals had a great time, what fun! This mac and cheese looks to-die. So cheesy and delicious.
Now that is a beautiful bowl of cheesy goodness! You are right, why mess with a good thing.
Vermont looks beautiful! This looks like the perfect mac and cheese recipe!
I love mac and cheese – yours looks so delicious. It’s past dinner time here and I really wish I had a serving or two of that right now!
This recipe looks so delicious and I’m so jealous of your delicious cheese-filled fall day with Annie. I’m so glad y’all got to meet up!
Love the pictures!!
I’m so going to have to try this soon! It’s finally cooling down here in Sacramento so I can actually make all this awesome autumnal/wintry foods.
Ok, I am pretty much drooling. That looks out of this world!
Holy wow that looks like a perfect mac and cheese. Im not allowed to deviate from BFs favorite recipe but I am going to have to sneak this one in when he isnt looking and deal with the aftermath later.
Yum, I love the white creaminess in this mac n cheese and buttered croutons sound wonderful to top it off with. Sounds like you had a nice trip – I love New England in the fall.
I have made this 3 times since I found it and I can attest for its creamy goodness! I will definitely be making more of this this winter!
I’m new to your blog and am loving everything I see so far! I love finding awesome food blogs.