Photo: Mac Daddy Mac n' Cheese Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 shallots, peeled
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 3 pieces bacon, diced, cooked, reserving 1 tablespoon bacon fat
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 4 cups heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- 1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound penne pasta, cooked
- 1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
- 2 tbsp. melted butter
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place shallots and garlic in a small aluminum foil pouch and drizzle with olive oil. Roast 20 to 30 minutes or until tender. Remove from foil and chop. In a large saute pan, reheat reserved bacon fat over medium heat. Add roasted shallot and garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add flour and stir for 1 minute. Whisk in heavy cream and thyme. Reduce by a third. Stir in cheeses until melted, creamy and thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and gently stir in pasta. Place in a 9X13 casserole dish. In a small bowl, mix together diced bacon, bread crumbs, butter and parsley. Top Mac n Cheese with Panko mixture and bake uncovered at same heat until bubbling and lightly browned on top, 20 to 25 minutes.
Review This Recipe
You must be logged in to review this recipe.
or Sign Up to Review
Newest Ratings and Reviews
Read all 161 reviews
By adayle84
New Castle, PA
on January 31, 2013
Flag
Flag This Review?
Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.
or Cancel
This recipe is amazing! Best one I've found so far. So many people have asked for the recipe (hence my trip here to share the link today! and it is often requested to be my addition to potlucks. Sometimes we add a little more pepper jack cheese and take out a little of the cheddar just to give it a little more kick but the recipe really is PERFECT just the way it is written!
By troubadourheart
Los Angeles, CA
on November 21, 2012
Flag
Flag This Review?
Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.
or Cancel
This mac and cheese is to die for. I've made it several times and every time there are no leftovers and I've had several people say it's the best they've had. And it's really easy to make it gluten free. Just use gluten free pasta and flour for the rue mixture and skip out on the panko. I usually put more well cooked bacon to give it an extra crunch since I don't use the panko.
Definitely use pepper jack cheese, it gives the dish the extra kick it needs without it being too spicy. I reduced the amount of cream by half and cut it with some milk and the dish still came out creamy and delicious.
By saxophonejeni
on November 13, 2012
Flag
Flag This Review?
Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.
or Cancel
I am usually not a fan of mac and cheese, but this recipe was FANTASTIC! I wouldn't stop eating it if it weren't for the calories lol I added more bacon and instead of putting it on top, I mixed it with everything else so it added more smokey of a flavor after baking. I also LOVE pepper jack cheese so I added more of it and it was great! I will try just using half of the cream and half milk instead for next time to see if it still turns out, but I don't see why not! Also, I kind of cheated for the first step... I didn't have time to let it roast in the oven so I just cooked the shallot and garlic with the bacon and then added it into the mix! It turned out great and it was one less step! It is a must-try recipe, and it can easily be changed to suit your own tastes!
Read all 161 reviews