The super easy mac & cheese recipe is our go to for a quick stove top meal. That being said, sometimes you need that extra comfort of baked mac & cheese topped with buttery bread crumbs. (PS – the sauce freezes great in those silicone molds for a quick dinner another night).
Baked Mac & Cheese
The super easy mac & cheese recipe is our go to for a quick stove top meal. That being said, sometimes you need that extra comfort of baked mac & cheese topped with buttery bread crumbs. (PS – the sauce freezes great in those silicone molds for a quick dinner another night).
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 8 x 8 casserole dish. Combine bread crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl. Set aside. Whisk tapioca with 1/4 cup of the rice milk to make a slurry. Set aside.
- Melt butter in a medium sized saucepan. Add the onion powder, dijon mustard, tabasco, worcestershire sauce, white pepper and salt. Simmer for three minutes. Add the remaining rice milk and heavy cream. Bring to a simmer.
- Whisk the tapioca starch slurry into the simmering sauce. Continue to simmer, whisking constantly, until the sauce has thickened and is smooth, about two minutes.
- Whisk in the cheese shreds and low protein cheese slices. If the cheese pieces do not melt after a few minutes, place an immersion blender in the pot and process until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings if desired.
- Meanwhile cook pasta in rapidly boiling salted water for ONLY 3 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water, drain the rest and return pasta to pot. Add in cheese sauce and pasta water. It will seem like way too much sauce. The pasta has been intentionally undercooked and will absorb a good of the sauce.
- Place pasta in prepared dish. Top with buttered breadcrumbs. Cover and bake for 10 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes (if you can).
