Pasta and cheese will never be the same again after you try this easy, three cheese mac and cheese bake. Spoiler alert: it includes bacon.
Directions for: Grown Up Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
4 oz thick-sliced bacon
Vegetable oil
2 cups elbow macaroni or cavatappi
1 cups milk
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
4 oz Gruyere cheese, grated
3 oz extra-sharp Cheddar, grated
2 oz blue cheese, such as Roquefort, crumbled
tsp freshly ground black pepper
Pinch nutmeg
2 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed
2 Tbsp freshly chopped basil leaves
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400F.
2. Place a baking rack on a sheet pan and arrange the bacon in 1 layer on the baking rack. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the bacon is crisp. Remove the pan carefully from the oven - there will be hot grease in the pan! Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and crumble when it is cool enough to handle.
3. Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the macaroni and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.
4. Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt the butter in a medium pot and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or 2 more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, blue cheese, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and crumbled bacon and stir well. Pour into 2 individual size gratin dishes.
5. Place the bread slices in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until you have coarse crumbs. Add the basil and pulse to combine. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top of the pasta. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.
See more: Bacon, Bake, Cheese, Comfort Food, Easy, Herbs, Pasta