{"id":1381,"date":"2026-01-29T21:18:56","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T21:18:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/?p=1381"},"modified":"2026-01-29T21:18:56","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T21:18:56","slug":"creamy-baked-mac-and-cheese","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/29\/creamy-baked-mac-and-cheese\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00a0Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>\u00a0Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese<\/h2>\n<p>Rich, ultra-creamy inside with a golden, bubbly top\u2014this is classic comfort food done right<\/p>\n<h3>Ingredients (US measures)<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Pasta<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1 lb (450 g) elbow macaroni<\/li>\n<li>Salt, for boiling water<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Cheese Sauce<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>4 tbsp butter<\/li>\n<li>4 tbsp all-purpose flour<\/li>\n<li>3 cups whole milk (warm)<\/li>\n<li>1 cup heavy cream<\/li>\n<li>2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded<\/li>\n<li>1 cup mozzarella or Monterey Jack, shredded<\/li>\n<li>\u00bd cup Parmesan cheese, grated<\/li>\n<li>1 tsp salt (or to taste)<\/li>\n<li>\u00bd tsp black pepper<\/li>\n<li>\u00bd tsp paprika<\/li>\n<li>\u00bd tsp garlic powder<\/li>\n<li>\u00bc tsp mustard powder (optional but recommended)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Topping (optional but delicious)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1 cup breadcrumbs or crushed crackers<\/li>\n<li>2 tbsp melted butter<\/li>\n<li>2 tbsp Parmesan cheese<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Instructions<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Cook the pasta<\/strong><br \/>\nBoil macaroni in well-salted water until <em>al dente<\/em> (about 1\u20132 minutes less than package instructions).<br \/>\nDrain and set aside.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Make the roux<\/strong><br \/>\nIn a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.<br \/>\nWhisk in flour and cook for 1\u20132 minutes until lightly golden (don\u2019t let it brown).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Add milk &amp; cream<\/strong><br \/>\nGradually whisk in warm milk, then cream.<br \/>\nCook, whisking constantly, until the sauce thickens (about 3\u20135 minutes).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Add cheese &amp; seasoning<\/strong><br \/>\nLower the heat. Stir in cheddar, mozzarella, and Parmesan until melted and smooth.<br \/>\nSeason with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and mustard powder.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Combine pasta &amp; sauce<\/strong><br \/>\nAdd cooked macaroni to the cheese sauce and mix until fully coated.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Prepare for baking<\/strong><br \/>\nPreheat oven to <strong>375\u00b0F (190\u00b0C)<\/strong>.<br \/>\nTransfer mac and cheese to a greased baking dish.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Add topping (optional)<\/strong><br \/>\nMix breadcrumbs with melted butter and Parmesan.<br \/>\nSprinkle evenly over the top.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bake<\/strong><br \/>\nBake uncovered for <strong>20\u201325 minutes<\/strong>, until bubbly and golden on top.<br \/>\nFor extra browning, broil for 2\u20133 minutes at the end (watch closely!).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rest &amp; serve<\/strong><br \/>\nLet it sit for 5 minutes before serving\u2014then enjoy the creamy magic<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>Tips for Extra Creaminess<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Grate cheese yourself (pre-shredded doesn\u2019t melt as well)<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t overbake<\/li>\n<li>Add a splash of milk before baking if it looks too thick<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese Rich, ultra-creamy inside with a golden, bubbly top\u2014this is classic comfort food done right Ingredients&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1382,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-recipe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1381","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1381"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1381\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1383,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1381\/revisions\/1383"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/recipes.ukbiddingdirectory.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}