Creamy Mac & Cheese

Main Course

Recipe courtesy of Williams Sonoma: Comfort Food

Serves a crowd

Ingredients: 
  • 11 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
  • Kosher salt, to taste
  • 12 oz. pasta, such as rigatoni
  • 2 slices crustless white bread
  • 2 tsp. minced fresh thyme
  • 1 small onion, minced
  • ½ cup flour
  • 3 cups milk
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 12 oz. grated sharp cheddar cheese
  • 8 oz. cooked ham (any variety will do), roughly chopped
  • 3 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
  • ½ cup minced flat-leaf parsley
  • ¼ tsp. hot sauce, such as Tabasco
  • 4 scallions, minced
  • ¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
  • ⅛ tsp. freshly ground nutmeg

Creamy Mac & Cheese

Click image to enlarge

Method: 

Grease a 2-qt. baking dish with 1 tbsp. melted butter and set aside. Bring a 6-qt. pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain the pasta, rinse, and set aside. Pulse the bread in a food processor until finely ground, mix with 4 tbsp. butter, and set aside.

Heat the oven to 400°F. Melt the remaining butter in a 6-qt. pot over medium heat. Add the thyme and onions and cook until soft, about 6 minutes. Whisk in the flour and cook for about 3 min­utes. Whisk in the milk and cream. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook, whisking, until thick, 10-12 minutes. Whisk in the ched­dar, ham, blue cheese, parsley, hot sauce, scallions, pepper, and nut­meg. Taste and season with salt as needed. Stir in the pasta, transfer to the prepared baking dish, and sprinkle with the bread crumbs. Bake until golden brown and bubbly, 30-40 minutes.


 

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