After several recipes, methods, and ingredients, we’ve come down to this: best-yet homemade mac n’ cheese.
Yum!
You will need:
- 6 strips of center-cut bacon
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 1 garlic glove, minced
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 2 1/2 cups grated extra sharp white cheese, shredded (we used Cougar Gold)
- pepper to taste
- 1 box of ribbed penne pasta
- 1 cup of pretzels; broken into bits
Cook bacon in a saucepan; set aside. Keep bacon grease to saute onion and garlic. Once browned, add butter. Once melted, reduce heat to medium and add flour. Mix with a whisk; this is the start of your roux. Once combined, reduce heat to low and add heavy cream and milk in 1/4 cup increments, alternating milk and cream. Mix each addition until blended; the sauce will be thick and beige. After all milk/cream is added, turn heat off and add shredded cheese, stirring constantly to incorporate. Add bacon and pepper to taste.
In a 9×12 baking dish, add 1/2 of the cooked pasta; add 1/2 of the sauce. Repeat. Mix sauce and pasta to combine. Top with pretzels.
Bake for 30 minutes at 400F or until top is browned.
Enjoy!
