STOVETOP MAC AND CHEESE RECIPE

Leaving this post up another day...

OK, sorry for delay.  At long last here is the stove top mac and cheese recipe we use.  It's not entirely ours, we found it online a while ago (Martha Stewart?) but we have tweaked it and adjusted over time.  It's a permanent addition to our recipe box now!

Cheese for mac and cheese

It takes three kinds of cheese.  Nothing like the ones that have five or six or even eight kinds and you have to break the bank buying exotic cheeses.  This comes out just like old fashioned simple creamy mac and cheese.  This is American yellow cheese (from the deli, not Velveeta), Parmesan and sharp cheddar.

Mac and cheese ingredients

Here are the other ingredients (amounts listed at end of post).  Mustard powder, milk, 1 lb dried pasta, butter, and flour, along with the cheeses shredded up (to make them melt easier and quicker).

Here is where I missed a photo (and the reason I had held off on posting but darn if I didn't forget again the last time we made it, ha). 

(next time we make this, I'll take a picture of this step and add it to this spot in the post)

Over medium heat, add butter and let it melt.  As soon as it starts to foam, add flour and whisk it until slightly darkened (about 2 minutes).  Add the mustard powder and whisk again to combine.

Slowly whisk in warmed milk.  You can warm the milk in the microwave for about 2 or 3 minutes.  It helps it come to temperature in the pan much quicker.

Heat the milk to boiling and then reduce heat to medium low and cook, stirring often until it is thick enough to coat a spoon.  This takes about 4 minutes.

Boiling pasta

Boil the pasta according to package directions and after it is done, drain and set aside but keep about one cup of pasta water in case you need to thin it down when it is all done.

*you should always do this with any pasta sauce to give you a back up way to thin sauces that are too thick.  An easy way to add some starchy thickening.  

Adding American cheese

Turn the heat down to low/simmer and add the cheese in batches.  First up, the American cheese.  Stir until melted into sauce...

Adding sharp cheddar

Add the sharp cheddar next and stir until melted and incorporated as well...

Adding Parmesan

Lastly, add the Parmesan and stir it until melted...

Add the cooked and drained pasta and stir...

Add salt and pepper to taste.  At this point you could also modify it any way you desire, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, etc.  Whatever flavors you like.  We keep ours just old school mac and cheese. 

Old fashioned stove top mac and cheese

Stir to combine it all.  If it seems too thick, you can add a bit of the reserved pasta water to loosen it up. This also works if it has to sit for a bit while other food is prepared.

Macaroni and cheese

Here it is on the plate.  It's just so creamy and tastes like a good old fashioned macaroni and cheese.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb pasta 
• 4 TBSP butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tsp mustard powder
• 3 cups whole milk, warmed
• 1 cup (4 ounces) American cheese (chopped)
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese (grated)
• 2 cups (8 ounces) sharp cheddar (grated)
• Salt/pepper/other spices to taste

See step by step instructions in photos above.

Enjoy!