Mac and Cheese ~ One of the Ultimate Comfort Foods

Mac and Cheese is one of the ultimate comfort foods. Sharing one way that our family makes this iconic dish.

---

Like many kids, the boys LOVE mac and cheese. 

Unfortunately, they were also becoming mac and cheese snobs with the boxed mix by Kraft being their favorite with a few store brands being acceptable as a substitute. 

Some store brands do NOT come close to tasting like Kraft and they’d let me know if they didn’t like it.

A few times before moving to Alaska, Stephen or I would try our hand at making some homemade macaroni and cheese. 

They’d eat it, but always say they’d be happier with the packaged stuff.

Well, seeing that the boxed stuff can run almost $1 per tiny box at the store (no super 4/$1 sales out here on the store brand!), I decided we needed to try making it from scratch again.

The first few attempts just didn’t seem to yield something the boys would devour. 

One recipe I tried called for onion which was NOT well received, even by Stephen.

Eventually, I opened up an old, dilapidated copy of Betty Crocker that Stephen’s held onto for years.  In the back is a section on sauces. 

Game to try another suggested way to make a cheese sauce, I followed the instructions for the basic white sauce.

Making a Basic Cheese Sauce 

Pretty simple…melt butter,

Stir in flour with salt, pepper and any other spice you might be adding.
Simmer on low until thickened.

Add milk and simmer until it thickens.  

Add a small pinch of salt (I like sea salt) to enhance the flavor.
Then you add the cheese.
Shredded or small chunks can be used. 
A combination of cheeses works best. 
A little Velvetta (chunks)
Sharp Cheddar (shredded)
Parmesan (shredded)
even a bit of Mozzarella (shredded)

Stir as it melts.

Tips from Multiple Trials

Well, simple as it might be, this time I got MUCH better results.

Dry mustard is suggested for the cheese sauce.  As I only had Chinese dry mustard in the house, that’s what I used in a slightly smaller amount.

One tip included in the sauce recipe is to do the initial simmer of the butter, flour and spices for at least one minute to help lose the flour taste in the sauce. 

Hmmm…that’s something I wasn’t really paying attention to when making a white sauce in earlier attempts.  I also didn’t add the spices to it

The boys all LOVE my homemade macaroni and cheese now. 

An Economical Choice for Mac and Cheese

I double the white sauce recipe from the book to make the white sauce and use about 2/3 pound of medium cheddar cheese to coat 1 1/2 pounds of elbow macaroni. 

With the pasta costing about $1 per pound, cheese bought on sale ($5 for 2 pounds of which I used 1/3 of the block), butter (1/2 a stick of butter purchased for $2.50 per pound), 2 cups of 1% milk (milk’s $2.99 a gallon here), and a little salt, pepper, and Chinese mustard, the total cost to make this yummy, filling dish is about $5 for ingredients.  

Since I’d be using butter and milk to make the boxed variety, I figure that I’m saving money by making it from scratch. And, even if it was a wash, this macaroni and cheese is truly made with love.

Now I need to dig out the Italian Mac and Cheese recipe my aunt shared years ago. 

I recall making it when P was little and he turned his nose up at it. 

But, I remember it as being heavenly and quite a nice change from the cheddar-based mac.

Maybe as their taste buds continue to ‘grow’, they’ll enjoy that variation as well.

Is Mac and Cheese one of your family’s comfort food dishes?

More Family Friendly Pasta Dishes

Here are a few more of our family favorites that include pasta.

Cajun Pasta 
Super Easy Baked Pasta
Baked Cheese and Spinach Tortellini
Chicken Cacciatore 
Tuna and Spaghetti 
Taste the Rainbow Pasta Salad

This post was originally published on Jun 1, 2010  and has since been updated on March 24, 2020.