I lost my appetite during Rookie’s final days, but it slowly returned as time passed. Even then, all I craved was comfort food, like soup, sweets and savory treats.
That’s where this triple cheese macaroni and cheese comes in. I couldn’t get the thought of ooey, gooey baked pasta out of my head … and so I got cooking.
I’m a fan of triple cheese macaroni and cheese for a few reasons:
- It features LOTS of sharp cheddar, Colby-Jack and Parmesan cheese.
- Crushed crackers take the topping up a notch. (Goodbye, boring bread crumbs.)
- The casserole can stand on its own or as a side.
I prefer to pair triple cheese macaroni and cheese with an iceberg lettuce salad (like the one on Page 110 of Anna Hezel’s Lasagna cookbook) to offset the richness of the dish. Or I’ll just eat it straight from the pie plate.
Recipe adapted from Lasagna.
Triple Cheese Macaroni and Cheese
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided, plus more, to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon ground white pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, cut into ½" pieces
- 4 ounces Colby-Jack cheese, cut into ½" pieces
- 1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 8 ounces ridged jumbo elbows
- 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup lightly crushed cheddar cheese crackers
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, for 4 minutes. Add milk and whisk until combined. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Cook, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Add ½ teaspoon salt, white pepper and nutmeg and stir to combine.
- Add half of the cheddar and Colby-Jack cheese to pot and cook, stirring constantly, until melted. Remove from heat and stir in Dijon mustard, remaining ½ teaspoon salt and black pepper.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente according to package directions. Drain.
- Add cooked pasta to pot with sauce and stir to combine. Gently fold in the remaining cheddar and Colby-Jack cheese. Transfer mixture to a buttered 9" pie plate.
- In a small bowl, combine the Parmesan cheese and crushed cheddar cheese crackers; toss to combine. Sprinkle over the pasta.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes before serving.
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