Four-Cheese Macaroni and Cheese
The secret to this ultracreamy macaroni and cheese? A little Velveeta mixed in with the other cheeses.
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Credit: André Baranowski
INGREDIENTS
Kosher salt, to taste8 oz. hollow pasta, preferably elbow macaroni or shells
3 slices crustless white bread
6 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ tsp. paprika
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2 shallots, minced
1 bay leaf
¼ cup flour
⅛ tsp. cayenne pepper
3 cups milk
10 oz. grated sharp white cheddar (about 4 cups)
10 oz. grated Gruyère (about 4 cups)
6 oz. Velveeta, cut into ½" cubes (about 1¼ cups)
1 oz. blue cheese, crumbled (about ¼ cup)
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Heat oven to 375°. Bring a 4-qt. saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked halfway through, about 3 minutes for elbow macaroni. Drain pasta; set pasta aside. Tear bread into small pieces and transfer to the bowl of a food processor. Process until finely ground; set aside. Return pan to medium heat and melt 3 tbsp. butter. Add bread crumbs and stir to combine. Transfer bread crumb mixture to a plate and set aside.2. Wipe out pan and set over medium heat. Melt the remaining butter and add the paprika, thyme, shallots, and bay leaf; cook, stirring often, until shallots are soft, about 5 minutes. Add flour and cayenne and stir until mixture thickens, 1 minute. Whisk in milk and cook, continuing to whisk often, until sauce has thickened and coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. Discard thyme and bay leaf and remove pan from heat.
3. Stir in cheddar, half the Gruyère, the Velveeta, and the blue cheese; continue stirring until smooth. Stir in pasta and season sauce with salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to an 8" x 8" baking dish. Sprinkle remaining Gruyère over top of pasta and then top with bread crumbs.
4. Transfer baking dish to an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet and bake until macaroni and cheese is golden brown and bubbly, 30 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Yes the amount of macaroni in the recipe is off, I adjusted all the ingredients to serve the group and instead of elbow mac's I used
mini-Penne from Italy, Total raves.