Traditional Southern Baked Macaroni and Cheese

By WhystleStop

So I replayed this conversation to my mother, because I knew I would get my idea that people still make macaroni and cheese the proper way reinforced. However, when I told her what was said, she said nobody does that anymore. Does what? Nobody makes a sauce and bakes it in the oven and all of that she said. WHAT? She goes on to tell me that she stopped doing that when the grandchildren were little, because they liked it just as well made on the stove and served right from the pan. THE GRANDCHILDREN! They were children. What did they know about the future of the traditional macaroni and cheese? How had I missed the fact that my own mother had stopped doing it the right way? The youngest grandchildren are a set of twins that are 19 years old! This travesty of the mac and cheese has been going on for over 20 years right in my own family and I didn't notice? I told my mother that Paula Deen still makes her macaroni and cheese the right way. She said, 'you do know that is just a tv show, right'? So I said, 'Well, why do I still make mine this way?' My mother said, well you are a little different. Are we seeing a trend here? lol I do tend to get a little passionate about my causes I guess...oh, well!

Different or not, I am on a mission to get people to make the macaroni and cheese the way it is supposed to be made. No blue box, no dump the stuff in the pot on the stove and eat it...but make it the dish it should be. The dish your grandmother made or your great- aunt or even Paula Deen on the show. It's really not a hard thing to make and the results are well worth it.

Ingredients

• 2 cups elbow macaroni (or penne)
• milk
• half and half
• salt
• pepper
• butter
• Tabasco sauce(optional, I don't like hot stuff)
• Worcestershire sauce
• Velveeta cheese
• Swiss cheese
• cheddar cheese
• garlic powder
• flour

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from sweetteaandcornbread.blogspot.com

Preparation

Step 1

Boil the macaroni in salted water for the time it says on the box and drain. Some recipes say to rinse it off, I don't do this. I think it removes the flavor. Also don't under cook it because if you do the macaroni will soak up all of your sauce and you will end up with dry mac and cheese.

Now we make a cheese sauce which I like to do in the microwave. It is much easier to do and doesn't stick or burn. Melt 1/2 stick of butter in the microwave and then add 1/4 cup of flour to that. Blend the flour into the butter with a whisk and microwave for about 30 seconds.

Add 1 cup half and half, 2 cups milk, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper, 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce and 1/2 tsp. Tabasco sauce. Whisk well and microwave for about 3 - 4 minutes. Whisk again to remove any lumps and then add 8 oz. of Velveeta cheese. Microwave for 2-3 more minutes until the cheese is melted and whisk again until smooth.

Beat 2 eggs in a bowl.

Put the macaroni in the cheese sauce and gently mix, then pour the eggs in and mix. Make sure the cheese sauce and pasta are not too hot or it will scramble your eggs. If it is still hot, you can temper your eggs by adding a little of the hot cheese sauce a spoonful at a time to the eggs and mixing to bring them up to temperature. After you mix, pour 1/2 into a 2 quart casserole dish you have sprayed well with cooking spray.

Lay about 3-4 slices of Swiss cheese on this layer and then cover with 1 cup cheddar cheese. Pour the other half over this and lay 3-4 slices of Swiss cheese over and the other 1 cup cheddar on top. Place in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 25-30 minutes or until it is bubbly and just starting to brown on top.

This sort of results in the best of both worlds of macaroni and cheese...it's creamy and custard -like because of the addition of the eggs. That is southern macaroni and cheese!

8 oz. Velveeta cheese ( you can use American, but nothing beats Velveeta in this)

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce (may sound strange but it adds a hint of flavor)

I found this on pinterest and love reading the conversation you had with the lady. Your recipe is wonderful. My sister us to make it this way. I plan on making this for Sunday dinner.

Thank you Christine for taking time to comment. I love to get the comments! I hope you enjoy it when you make it Sunday. Please keep visisting! :)

Oh thank you for re-inspiring me to do it right. I was raised by a Southern mom and gramma. We always baked the mac and cheese but kids took a fancy to the commercials for the boxes and away our old time recipes went down the drain! I actually hate the box version. Just a few days I at least made my sauce but yet missed the baing part. Ok so now I am gonna do it right again by nab. And I like the sound of the maters on top ... and will add a treat for my kids, dried onions! I am ready to party!

I use the box also but add more chedder and montery Jack cheese to mine, and extra butter.

Too funny! I remember seeing a 'Martha' recipe called Mac and Cheese 101...I didn't have the 4 hours & $50 it was going to take to make it...

Martha can be a little over the top at times for sure. I promise that this recipe will take less than an hour to make and about maybe $4.00. :)

LOVE IT!! I am not alone!!.. I make mine like this too! I used to have to make a super large batch up for my ex husband's work for all the get togethers and carry ins.. I wonder who makes it now.. LOL... the kids and I still enjoy it often.. so let's keep doing it the real way :)

I've been searching high low medium for a GOOD BAKED mac and cheese. I am so trying this one. I have a friend who bakes hers, and I would too. Its worth the extra time I think. mmmmm.... can't wait. I WILL sadly, have to wait til next month! velveeta (giggle), my mom and I would buy the tiny box, and wolf it down. ;) thanks so much for sharing, I had a good laugh at your first paragraph too hehee! cheers! Cynthia - ladybug addict.

I make mine very similar to this, but I make the cheese sauce on the stove top and add minced onions to it. Also, to fancy it up at times, I add some chopped pimientos to it--adds a bit of a zing. I also top it with sliced tomatoes (when I can get them fresh in the summertime) and buttered bread crumbs. This has been a staple in my home for many decades. On a side note--why would anybody make mac & cheese with "powdered cheese"??? Just ain't right a'tall!!!!

lol..I make it that way too..my only issue is with the velveeta...processed cheese creeps me out..lol. I don't put eggs in it or always bake it but I make the cheese sauce on the stove. I usually use a mexican blend because it seems to be a little more melty (probably what the velveeta is for). :) Don't feel bad, you are not alone. lol..there are still people out there who make mac n cheese from scratch..it's soo much better!

This sounds wonderful! I love to make Homemade Mac and Cheese.

We went to a restaurant in Arizona a few years back, and their Mac & Cheese was good. I ask the manager what they put in there to make it taste this good... They use corn and Jalapenos. I tried it and it was so good.... Now, I can't to try this one! THANKS!!!!!

I make baked mac & cheese too, but mine is a shortcut version lol no eggs, no flour... just velveeta, cream cheese, and milk melted together with whatever flavorings you want to use (ie hot sauce, etc) then I toss in the cooked macaroni with some shredded cheese, put it in a baking dish, cover with more shredded cheese, bread crumbs, butter, and a sprinkling of paprika... good stuff!

I still bake my Mac and cheese. when I am being lazy and make kraft Mac n cheese my family looks at me crazy....lol although I make mine a little different from you ( I don't use half n half, flour or the microwave) I make my cheese sauce on the stove I think the end result is the same... The Best Mac n Cheese ever.....

My sister and I bake our mac and cheese but we layer it. One layer of noodles, layer of sliced cheddar cheese, layer of crushed crackers. then another layer.of noodles,.cheese and crackers.. add milk to top of layers. Bake. My grandmother and mother always made mac and cheese this wsh

I always make a mac and cheese in the oven! Mine is very simple with milk, eggs, salt, pepper, shredded cheddar and sliced Velvetta. I layer macaroni and the cheeses. Then I pour the milk mixture over the mac and cheeses. I crumble crackers on top and dot butter on them.

So glad I found this via facebook! I cannot find my old Betty Crocker cookbook and this is very similar to what I used to make when my kiddos were little. I wanted to make something special for our multi family Thanksgiving gathering.

LMBO!!! Sweetheart, you're different and special just like the rest of us, they're the abnormal ones. My stay at home mama always baked it, and then only on the weekends after she started working. My sister was a basketball, baseball and track Jock and needed pasta to sustain herself at the games; so the Kraft blue boxes were quick and easy, but by far not the better substitute. I'll admit I still use the boxes when I'm being lazy, but I always add polska kielbasa sausage or Canadian Bacon with onions, and also flavor it more with garlic, salt, pepper and cayenne. When I have the time and bake it: elbow macaroni, butter, milk, medium cheddar cheese, and either smashed Ritz crackers or garlic croutons to top it off. As for your yummy sounding recipe, I am not a Tabasco person at all and velveta tastes weird to me, but will happily try the rest of the ingredients and your cooking style ASAP. Thanks for the post and keep on being different, you make the world more interesting.

We make it like my Mother and her Mother made it.....using ONLY American Cheese cut straight off the "stick" as we call it (the big block )..NOT slices. We use evaporated milk also. Can't wait to have some REAL mac & cheese. Hope everyone enjoys theirs however they it..

You do need to add 2 beaten eggs.

Skip the velveeta all together, and use real cheeses. Asiago, Fontina, Gyure, Parmesean, Swiss, Blue Cheese. Just make sure at least one is a soft cheese good for melting, if you use swiss, or mozzarella, the best thing to use is a parmesean cheese with it.

lol. Love your story. I still prefer baked Mac and Cheese, however a little different from your. For a quicky for my 4 year old, I do use the blue box occassionally, but I have to add plenty of extra cheese and usually canned milk.

I literally LOL when I read this. I have to beg to differ with your mom and co-worker though, I do still make Mac n Cheese baked in the oven. My son will have it no other way! So I guess I'm a little different also ;)

I learned from my Mama and I still make her way and its definitely in the oven. However, I don't use eggs in my cheese sauce. Your recipe sounds yummy. Folks eating that junk in a box, well, I just feel sorry for them. :)

For whoever asked about the eggs, you do not have to add them, but just try it once. It changes the texture of macaroni and cheese to more of a custard like consistency and it is so good.

I add some mayo to make it really "southern". In Alabama we put mayo in just about everything and it really creams is up. A few tbsp of pimentos mixed into the cheese sauce in a flood processor or blender before you pour over pasta really gives it a nice kick too. Then I top with crushed ritz crackers tossed with a little melted butter instead of more cheese but just at the end of baking. My kids won't eat it. They got so used to the daycare's blue box mac and cheese. They say mine is too googy and cheesy. The horror, too much cheese in mac & cheese!! To add onto your story. One time I made this for a boyfriend when I was in college and he called me Betty Crocker. Which I was flattered until a few weeks later he broke up with me and said I was too "domesticated" and he wasn't ready to settle down. At the time, it floored me. Now, I laugh and thank God. I think he is on his 3rd marriage and my husband of 15 years loves that can cook things from scratch.

You go girl. I have always and forevermore will MAKE macaroni and cheese. It's not the real thing if you don't !!!!!

If it helps, I'm only in my 20's and I LOVE to make REAL baked mac and cheese! So my generation isn't completely a lost cause haha. :) I'm definitely going to try your version. I don't use Velveeta but it sounds SO yummy! I've also never put eggs in mine but I'm definitely going to try that too! I use them in baked ziti and other pastas so what's the difference? Thanks for this great recipe! (I'm sure my husband will thank you too -- we always fight over the leftovers! :) )

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