What is the best macaroni and cheese recipe?

I'm on a mission to find the best mac and cheese recipe! Please provide the full recipe and instructions (if possible), or a website. Thanks!! :)What is the best macaroni and cheese recipe?
I don't have an exact recipe, but everyone loves mine!





Boil one pound of elbow macaroni, drain and set aside.





Shred two 8 ounce bricks of Cabot sharp white cheddar cheese (or any cheddar that you prefer) and set aside.





In a large sauce pan, melt 4 tablespoons of butter, then whisk in 4 - 6 tablespoons of flour to make a roux. Brown VERY slightly over low heat.





Slowly add milk a little at a time, stirring well and allowing to thicken before adding more. You need to add enough milk to get it to the consistancy of a medium thickness gravy.





In a large mixing bowl, pour the sauce over the noodles, mix well. Add most of the shredded cheese, mix well (hands work best!) Put the mixture into a large casserole dish (you may need two) and top with the rest of the cheese.





Put in a 400º oven for about 45 minutes or until hot and bubbly, with the yummy browned bits at the edges.





Sometimes I also add cubed ham to make it a more substantial meal.What is the best macaroni and cheese recipe?
Ingredients


8 ounces macaroni


1 1/2 cups milk


1 1/2 teaspoons ground mustard


1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce


3/4 teaspoon salt


1 dash hot pepper sauce


1 1/2 tablespoons butter


3 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided


1/2 cup bread crumbs


2 tablespoons butter, melted


1/2 teaspoon paprika





Instructions


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 2 quart casserole dish.


Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add macaroni and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.


Heat the milk in a small saucepan. Stir in mustard, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and hot sauce. Set aside.


Stir 1 1/2 tablespoons butter and 3 cups cheese into the drained macaroni. Pour the hot milk mixture over the cheese and macaroni. Transfer to prepared baking dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheddar on top. Combine the bread crumbs with the melted butter, and spread over the top. Sprinkle with paprika.


Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, and then place under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes.
Horseradish Mac %26amp; Cheese Recipe


4 cups cooked elbow macaroni (about 2 cups uncooked)


2 cups (8 oz.) Aged Cheddar Cheese with Horseradish


1 cup Cottage Cheese


3/4 cup Sour Cream


1/2 cup skim milk


2 tablespoons grated fresh onion


1-1/2 teaspoons Butter, melted


1/2 teaspoon salt


1/4 teaspoon pepper


1 egg, slightly beaten


Vegetable cooking spray


1/3 cup dry bread crumbs


1 tablespoon Butter, melted


1/4 teaspoon paprika


Preparation:


In a bowl, stir together macaroni, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, skim milk, onion, butter, salt, pepper and egg. Spoon into a 2-quart casserole dish coated with cooking spray. Combine bread crumbs with butter and paprika. Sprinkle over casserole. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover, bake five minutes or until set. Garnish with oregano.
Serves 4





1 firm ripe pink,black or white aubergine


extra Virgin olive oil


2 cloves of garlic,peeled and sliced


1onion.peeled and finely chopped


2 x 200g tins of good quality plum tomatoes


1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar


1 piece of parmesan cheese,for grating


sea salt and freshly ground black pepper


optional:1-2 fresh or dried chillies,chopped or crumbled


a bunch of fresh basil,leaves ripped and stalks sliced


4 tablespoon double cream


455g/1lb rigatoni or penne


200g/7 0z cow's milk mozzarella





Removed both ends of the aubergine and slice it into 1 cm/ 1/2 inch slices,then slice these across and finely dice into 1cm/1/2 inch cubes.





Do not season your aubergine with salt and sit for a while in a colander to draw out the bitterness,unless you are dealing with a seedy or bitter aubergine.





Now put a large sauce pan on the heat and drizzle in 4 to 5 tablespoon of extra Virgin olive oil.When it's hot, added the cubes of aubergine,and as soon as they hit the pan stir them around with a spoon so they are delicately coatted with the oil and not soaked on one side only. Cook for about 7 to 8 minutes on a medium heat. Then add the garlic and onion. When they have a little colour, add the tinned tomatoes and the balsamic vinegar. Stir around and season carefully with salt and pepper. At this point, if you wnated to give the dish a little heat you could add some chopped fresh or crumbled dried chilli, but that's down to you. Add the basil stalks, and simmer the sauce nice and gently for around 15 minutes, then add the cream.





While the sauce is simmering, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and added the pasta. Cook according to the packet instructions until it is soft but still holding its shape, then drain it, savig a little of the cooking water. I like to put the pasta back into the pot it was cooked in with a tiny bit of the cooking water and a drizzle of oilve oil and move it around so it becomes almost dressed wth the water and oil.





At this point add the tomato sauce to the pasta. By the time aubergines will have cooked into a creamy tomatoey puple, whick is just yum yum yum :-)) Season carefully to taste with salt and pepper. When all my guests are around the table, I take the pan to the table. tear up the mozzarella and the fresh basil, and fold these in nicely for 30 second. Then very quickly serve into bowl. By the time your guest start to eat, mozzarella will have started to melt and will stringy and gorgeous and really milgy-testing. Just lovely with the tomatoes and aubergine. Serve at the table with a block of parmesan cheese and a grater so that everyone can help themselves.
MARTHA STEWART MAC %26amp; CHEESE





4 Tb butter


3 slices white bread, crusts removed and bread cut into 1/4” pieces


2-3/4 cups milk


1/4 cup flour


1 tsp salt


dash of nutmeg, black pepper and cayene pepper


2-1/4 cups white cheddar cheese, grated


1 cup Gruyere cheese, grated


1 lb. elbow macaroni





Butter a casserole dish and set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place bread in a medium bowl and melt 1 Tb butter. Pour butter in bowl with bread and toss. Set the bread crumbs aside. In a sauce pan on medium heat, heat the milk. Melt the remaining 3TB in a skillet over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook stirring for 1 minute. While whisking, slowly pour in heated milk. Continue cooking, whisking constantly until the mix bubbles and becomes thick. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, peppers, 1-1/2 cups of the cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup of the Gruyere cheese. Set cheese sauce aside. Cook the macaroni 2-3 minutes less than the required time on the box, until the outside of the pasta is cooked and inside is underdone. Transfer the pasta to a colander and rinse with cold water. Stir the macaroni in the cheese sauce. Pour the mix into the casserole dish and sprinkle with the remaining cheeses and bread crumbs. Bake until browed on top 30 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and serve. Serves 6.





FYI - GRUYERE CHEESE is a hard yellow cheese. You can get it at almost any grocery store.





DIVIDED means...you need the ingredient twice in the recipe. So while it may say '1 cup cheese divided' once you get to the recipe, you will likely see that you need 1/2 cup here and 1/2 cup there. As in you need the entire cup, just not used all at once


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This is the copycat recipe for Cracker Barrell Mac and Cheese and it's great!





Cracker Barrel Mac %26amp; Cheese





2 tablespoons flour


1 cup chicken broth


1/2 cup cream


2 1/2 cups shredded Colby cheese


2 1/2 cups uncooked pasta -- elbows, etc.


1 teaspoon salt





In a sauce pan melt butter over medium low heat then add the flour a little bit at a time while whisking to make a roux. Heat the broth. Next add the broth to the roux, stir with the whisk. This will thicken as it heats. Next add a little cream watch for consistency.





Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a separate pot, add salt, and pasta.





In the other pot add shredded cheese a 1/4 of a cup at a time while stirring with a spoon. When you have about one cup of cheese in you can add the rest of the cheese.





Cook the pasta al dente. Strain and combine with the cheese sauce.





Pour the mix into a casserole and bake uncovered in a preheated oven set to 350°F for about 10 minutes. Keep an eye on the mac %26amp; cheese, you want it to brown around the edges and in patches on top.





Remove and let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy


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6 slices bacon


8 ounces pasta


1 onion, chopped


1 clove garlic, minced


3 cups shredded Cheddar cheese


4 tablespoons butter


3 tablespoons all-purpose flour


2 cups cream








DIRECTIONS:


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).


Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.


In a large pot with boiling salted water cook pasta until al dente. Drain.


In a medium skillet saute the chopped onion, and minced garlic. Take off heat and add chopped cooked bacon and set aside.


To make the sauce, in a medium saucepan melt the butter or margarine over low heat. Once melted, add the flour and stir constantly for 2 minutes. Gradually add milk and continue stirring until thickened. Stir in 2 cups of the grated Cheddar cheese and stir until melted.


Combine cooked pasta, sauteed vegetables and sauce. Pour into a 2 quart casserole dish. Add the last cup of grated Cheddar cheese to top of mixture.


Bake uncovered in preheated oven until cheese on top is melted and brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve warm.
Ok, I have a couple but will give you one...





For about 2 C of cooked macaroni...





Make a white sauce.


2 T flour


2 T butter (or margarine)


1 C milk


Mix the flour and butter and microwave it. Add the milk slowly and mix it in. Cook and stir until thickened... Add cheese. As much as you want. Then, I like to put some cubed up cheese with the cooked macaroni. Then, pour the white sauce over... Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.


Yum.


Just made it yesterday
Grown-Up Macaroni %26amp; Cheese





4 oz thick-sliced bacon


Vegetable oil


Kosher salt


2 cups elbow macaroni or cavatappi


1½ cups milk


2 Tbsp. unsalted butter


2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour


4 oz Gruyere cheese, grated


3 oz extra-sharp Cheddar, grated


2 oz blue cheese, such as Roquefort, crumbled


¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper


Pinch nutmeg


2 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed


2 Tbsp. freshly chopped basil leaves





Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place a baking rack on a sheet pan and arrange the bacon in 1 layer on the baking rack. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the bacon is crisp. Remove the pan carefully from the oven - there will be hot grease in the pan! Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and crumble when it is cool enough to handle.


Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the macaroni and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.


Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt the butter in a medium pot and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or 2 more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, blue cheese, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and crumbled bacon and stir well. Pour into 2 individual size gratin dishes.


Place the bread slices in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until you have coarse crumbs. Add the basil and pulse to combine. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top of the pasta. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.





--Ina Garten


PHOTO: http://img.foodnetwork.com/FOOD/2008/01/…
I'm a purist for mac and cheese. If you want to add bacon or use some other pasta, that's all fine and good, but it's not mac and cheese anymore.





I make this just about every week. The best thing for bread crumbs is ground up grilled cheese sandwiches. That's what I used when I made it as a summer camp cook. I've served well over a 1000 people my Mac and Cheese and no complaints yet.





This makes 8 healthy servings:





2 TBS Butter


2 TBS Flour





4 cups milk


12-16 oz shredded cheese (Cheddar, Jack, Munster, Colby or any mix. I like Collby-Jack the best)


2 tsp Salt


1 TBS dry Mustard(optional)


1 TBS white pepper(optional)





1 pound elbow macaroni





In a large saucepan melt the butter on low heat and stir in the flour. After it is fully mixed in add in about 2 cups of the milk and bring to a simmer on low-medium heat. When it starts to thicken, add in the rest of the milk and bring up to a simmer again. Remove from heat. Add in about half of the shredded cheese and stir until smooth.





Meanwhile cook the pasta. Drain well. Transfer the sauce into the pasta pot to get any remaining pasta from the bottom of the pot. Return the pasta to the pot and stir. Add in the rest of the cheese but do not worry about it melting all the way.





Put into a 9x13x2 baking pan. Top with breadcrumbs. Make a ';Smiley face'; with some paprika and bake at 350 until it starts to brown. Let cool slightly before serving.





Serve with either Frank's Red Hot or Tapatio Hot sauce.





The Final Product:


http://www.flickr.com/photos/42327774@N0…





The Smiley Face makes all the difference.