What is it about mac and cheese that makes it the ultimate comfort food? I don’t know, but I am a fan of anything that has to do with cheese. Seriously.
The other night I made homemade chicken nuggets based on this recipe from Skinnytaste. Oh my gosh, they are delicious! And super easy– I highly recommend giving them a try. I really wanted to have macaroni and cheese with them, but we haven’t had any of the boxed stuff in the house for a really long time. It actually doesn’t take much to make homemade mac and cheese, and I found that I had all of the ingredients on hand. (Even though we are at the end of our grocery cycle– meaning we need to go shopping soon.) Here are the ingredients I threw together to make mac and cheese:
- Cheddar cheese (about 1 1/1 cups)
- Parmesan cheese (about 1/2 cup)
- A little over 1/2 a bag of wide egg noodles (about 8 oz)
- Chopped onion (however much you like- I used about 1/4 cup)
- 1/4 cup of butter
- Milk (about 2 cups)
- 1/4 cup of flour
- Seasonings of your choice (I used Alpine Touch, salt, pepper, and garlic powder– and I did not measure)
- 4 strips of bacon
Extra cheese, please.
I don’t really measure unless I’m strictly following a recipe, so that’s why everything says “about.” Really, it’s up to you how seasoned you want it to be, how salty you want it to be, and how cheesy you want it to be. Mine came out super cheesy, which is awesome because I love cheese. But you can always use less if you want.
Preheat the oven to 350. Then boil water for your noodles. While you’re waiting for the water to boil, go ahead and start the bacon. I just cook my bacon in a regular skillet pan, flipping it back and forth until it’s crispy. While you’re tending to the bacon, be sure to keep up on your noodles. I use the wide egg noodles (I like to call them “casserole noodles”) and they cook fairly quickly.
Drain the noodles, set aside. Set the bacon aside between paper towels to drain. Throw the chopped onion into the skillet with the bacon grease and let them saute until tender. Then, get a saucepan and melt the butter. Add the flour and seasonings. (Go crazy! I don’t usually measure seasonings, and I like to add whatever I like.) Also, add the milk. Bring to boiling. Add the cheese and stir until melted. Taste test to see if you want to add more seasonings. Crumble or chop the bacon.
Put the noodles into a casserole dish. Add sauce, onions and crumbled bacon. Sprinkle the top with more parmesan cheese and place in the oven. Bake until the cheese melts, or at least 10 minutes.
Take it out of the oven, and serve it up! Oh, and I can speak from experience that this stuff is delicious the next day.
Yum.
Who knew homemade mac and cheese could be so easy? I’m already thinking of other variations I want to do. Different kinds of cheeses, adding some different vegetables, maybe some ham… the options are endless.
Have you made homemade mac and cheese?
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