Any recommendations? Basic elbows. No lobster mac and cheese with Pappardelle and cream sauce.
Open box of Kraft, Annie’s, or Trader Joes. Follow directions on box. Be hero to kids. Seriously.
the Cook Illustrated M&C is super normal and a crowd pleaser
http://www.food.com/recipe/cooks-illustrated-classic-macaroni-and-cheese-446029
seriously kids and adults love this classic version. What makes it good is that it tastes way better than Kraft but is not out there in any way…
This recipe was from Nancy Reagan. She said it was President Reagan’s favorite. This recipe will definitely go over well with the under 12 set.
Velveeta works too
Add a bit of milk… cut chunks. melt …good to go
I’ve made the Cook’s Illustrated recipe dozens of times. Literally. If you choose to make that, I have a couple of modifications I’d suggest. First, I think the flour can be scaled back to 5 tablespoons instead of six. I usually uses 5.5. Second, if you decide to top with breadcrumbs and brown under the broiler, I’d suggest reducing the slices of bread to three and augmenting with some grated cheese of any type.
I actually think for kids the easiest thing to do (and can be easily adapted for adults) is to melt chunks of 2% Velveeta in milk, which creates a smooth base without the need for a béchamel. Then you can easily stir one or more other cheeses into that base for flavor as the Velveeta doesn’t do much in that department. I personally like one or more of: Gruyere, White Cheddar, and/or parmesan.
This is fast and easy, I keep Velveeta in the cupboard for that purpose, and while its processed I feel better giving the kids that then the boxed stuff plus I can add better cheese and its good for me.
I’ve made the Cook’s recipe as well, but its a lot of butter and I find that the béchamel can be testy with Cheddar, breaking at times. It always seems to come out a bit greasy to me with that amount of butter and cheese.
Looks good. I will make a triple recipe. I think I will leave out the breadcrumb topping to simplify.
My kids were Velveeta lovers and this is what I always did at home to make them happy. If I chicken out towards the end - we are feeding 75 people including about 30 kids - I may go the Velveeta route and spice it up with other cheese.
I use panko instead of white bread (never buy the stuff save for one loaf for garden tomato sandwiches)
I’ve made the Cook’s Illustrated recipe dozens of times. Clearly, I like it as did my wife when she ate dairy. The kids thought it was ok, but they preferred Annie’s or TJ’s instant boxed as Adam noted up-thread.
You should use these rather than macaroni. Always a conversation starter
Cooks illustrated “light” version of Mac and cheese maybe even easier. Instead of a bechamel it uses cans of evaporated milk and some corn starch. Cuts down the amount of fat in the recipe too.
I did say 12 and under set! You want me to get arrested?
Sounds similar to Kenji’s cheese sauce recipe, which I was going to suggest as an alternative to the Velveeta route. This recipe steered us off Velveeta in our Superbowl party chile con queso and we’ve never looked back:
Lisa Schroeder, the chef at Mother’s Bistro in PDX has one of the easiest recipes I’ve ever seen for Mac & Cheese. The basic recipe is heavy cream, cheese, and macaroni. Here’s a dolled up version with bacon.
Standard mac and cheese is super super easy. Mornay sauce with pasta.
Agreed.
For my kids, I make some modifications to make it slightly “healthier” by:
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using vege macaroni, I think the brand is Anthony’s and there’s no discernible difference between this and regular pasta
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when making the roux, I use olive oil instead of butter and I use 1% milk
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no skimping on the cheese though, medium Tillamook cheddar is the go-to
Hey there,
The mac-n-cheese recipe mentioned on this blog post is one of my favorites. Plus, the post gives you some wines that go well with your mac-n-cheese (not for the kids, of course!) The Perfect Mac and Cheese Wine Pairing | Mira Winery
Happy eating!
A couple packs of the “Fondue Cheese” in the skinny box at the local grocery store.
Melt with some sauvignon blanc or reisling to thin it.
Mix with macaroni.
It is my kid’s favorite dish on earth.