Homemade Mac N Cheese

This was a really yummy recipe that I got off of the Betty Crocker website.  It calls for cooking the dish like a casserole once it is finished, however, when I make it again, I’ll probably skip that step.  It seemed to overcook the noodles and the sauce was less creamy than when we tasted it right after I added the noodles and the sauce together.  The recipe also didn’t call for ham, but I added it to give it some more protein and make it a complete meal rather than just like a side-dish.

2 cups elbow macaroni- cook with a little salted water

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp ground mustard (the dry kind)

1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce (I didn’t measure this out- just poured some in- it was probably more than 1/4 tsp, but it was yummy)

2 cups milk

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (I actually used a Mexican blend because that is what I had on hand)

Chopped turkey ham (my personal addition if you like)

While macaroni is cooking, melt butter in a large sauce pan over low heat.  Stir in flour, salt, pepper, ground mustard and W. sauce.  Mix it into melted butter until smooth- this is a roux (pronounced roo) and is what will make the mixture thicken.  Stir in milk and heat to boiling- stirring constantly so the milk doesn’t scald.  Heat until it is thickened- kind of like gravy. Stir in cheese until melted.  Stir in cooked macaroni and ham if desired.

It calls for baking it uncovered for 20-25 min at 350 in a casserole dish.  I think I’ll skip this part next time.

Let me know if you guys like this recipe too.