White Cheddar Mac and Cheese

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better– gooey, comforting mac and cheese gets a tasty upgrade with sharp white cheddar. This indulgent dish starts with a velvety cream sauce to which you’ll add copious amounts of sharp white cheddar cheese. Topped with even more cheddar and baked to golden perfection, this white cheddar mac and cheese is the definition of comfort.

How to Make White Cheddar Mac and Cheese

The absolute hero of this recipe is its creamy white cheddar cheese sauce. This sauce essentially begins as a béchamel, a simple French sauce made from cooking butter and flour together before whisking in milk or cream. The butter/flour mixture used as the thickening agent is also known as a roux.

Here is the step-by-step breakdown of how to first make the béchamel before transforming it into the white cheddar cheese sauce. Fold in your elbow noodles, top with even more white cheddar, and bake to create a toasty cheese crust.

1. In a saucepan over medium-low heat, make the roux by melting butter before sprinkling in equal parts flour. Whisk to break up any lumps and cook the roux for a minute or two to cook out any raw flour flavor.
2. Slowly whisk in the whole milk and half & half, which should be at room temperature. Cook the sauce over medium-low heat until its is nice and thick, whisking the whole time. Be careful to not let the sauce come to a boil.
3. Once the béchamel is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, remove the saucepan from the heat. Gradually stir in the shredded white cheddar cheese in batches. Once all the cheese has melted, season with kosher salt and white pepper.
4. To the cheese sauce, fold in elbow noodles, cooked to al dente. If you like, you can stop at this stage and enjoy as a creamy stovetop mac and cheese, just note that you made not need all of the cheese sauce.
5. To take it a step further, transfer the mac into a lightly buttered baking dish or cast iron pan and top with even more shredded white cheddar. Bake on the top rack in your oven at 375° for 10-15 minutes until the cheese has formed a golden brown crust.

Tips for Mac and Cheese

To ensure your mac and cheese comes out perfectly creamy, here are some tips on how to to keep your cheese sauce from curdling or “breaking”. This happens when the oils in the cheese separate from the milk solids resulting in lumps or graininess.

To ensure ultimate mac and cheese success, follow these simple tips:

• Shred your own cheese: It’s essential for any mac and cheese recipe that you buy blocks of cheese and take the time to shred them yourself. Pre-shredded cheese can include anti-clumping agents which can keep it from melting smoothly.
• Room temp milk and half & half: When the milk and half & half is added to the roux (butter/flour) it helps the mixture come together if they are already at room temperature. Also be sure to add the liquids in slowly, whisking the whole time.
• Use low or medium-low heat: And be sure not to let the sauce boil. Also, when it’s time to stir in the shredded cheese, take the pot off the heat entirely. The heat from the cream sauce is more than enough to melt your cheese, which by the way you should stir in very gradually and in batches.

More Mac & Cheese Recipes

• Beecher’s “World’s Best” Mac and Cheese
• Grilled Mac and Cheese
• Vintage Bacon Mac N’ Cheese