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Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

Let me just put it out there – I like boxed macaroni and cheese. Yes, I do. I love it in all its powdery goodness.  I realize that powdered cheese probably freaks some of you out. If I think about it for long periods of time, it starts to freak me out. So, try this – don’t think. It really helps. Homemade macaroni and cheese, and I’m not talking about using Velveeta here folks, will blow a boxed mix out of the water. After you’ve had it, you’ll wonder why you still keep going back to the box. Well, I keep going back to the box because I get it so cheap……better than going back to the bottle I guess.  Anyway, making it is so easy. Everyone will be impressed when you tell them you made your macaroni and cheese from SCRATCH! My father-in-law says that he loves scratch because it is good for making all sorts of things. So, let’s impress some friends, shall we?

You need salt, pepper, butter, elbow macaroni, cornstarch, cheese, ground mustard, water, and evaporated milk. Now, you’ve heard me say it before but I’m going to say it again – buy cheese in blocks instead of pre-shredded. Why? Because you get more for your money.  Cheese that you shred will be fluffier, so you’ll get more cups out of one block. Plus, pre-shredded has cornstarch on it so it doesn’t melt as pretty. I used pre-shredded on the very top of mine because I had some in the fridge left over from a birthday party. Excuses, excuses.

Grab a small saucepan and put your cornstarch, salt, mustard, and pepper in there. Ground mustard gives the macaroni a little bit of a twangy flavor. Please don’t leave it out – you’ll be eternally sorry if you do. ETERNALLY SORRY!

Get out your favorite whisk (yes, I have a favorite whisk) and begin to pour in your evaporated milk. I don’t have a picture of that because I only have two hands….until Annie is big enough for pour things for Mommy. While you’re pouring, whisk the whole time. We don’t want any lumps, so whisk until they’re all gone. I find it’s easier if I pour in a little milk at a time and whisk until all the lumps are gone and THEN add the rest of the milk.

Add your water after the milk, but keep whisking. Workout, check!

Now, pour in the melted butter and whisk again.

While all this is going on, you want to boil your pasta so it’s ready to go when you’re done with the sauce. You can use any type of pasta you want, but technically Macaroni and Cheese uses elbow pasta…..but I don’t want to get all technical on you. Use a different type if you want to be weird.

Now, over medium-high heat bring your sauce to a boil and then boil for 1 minute. Make sure you’re whisking the whole time……if you don’t, it will stick and burn on the bottom. And I’ll just tell you right now that it’s horrible to clean up. You’ll just think about throwing the pan away. Not that I’ve done that or anything.

After the minute is up, take your pan off the heat and add the cheese. Stir it until all the cheese is melted. Wow…..things are starting to look really good here.

Drain your cooked pasta with your favorite colander (yes, I have a favorite colander) and add it to the cheese sauce. Stir until all the noodles are coated. Stirring noodles is fun. They’re so slippery!

Pour your pasta mix into a greased 2 quart dish. Make sure you spray it well, so anything that bakes on will come off easily. Easy = happy Stacy.

Sprinkle the top with more cheese….but not too much cheese. We don’t want to have to take a laxative after dinner.

Pop that sucker into the oven and bake about 20 minutes until it looks like this. Oh yeah. Now THAT is macaroni and cheese!

I usually let mine sit a few minutes so it can get a little thicker, and then I serve it up. I don’t want it running all over the plate. Shew. It’s SO good….unless your name is Annie. I have an alien child who doesn’t like mac and cheese. I tried to make her eat some by sneaking it in on her. I thought I was SO smart……well, she showed me. She threw it up so we had a lovely mess to clean up at dinner. I guess she showed me. Point taken.

Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon dry mustard
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • 1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 ½ cups cheese, grated
  • 1 2/3 cups elbow macaroni, cooked and drained
  1. Combine cornstarch, salt, mustard, and pepper in a medium saucepan.
  2. Stir in evaporated milk, water, and melted butter. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil.
  3. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat.
  4. Stir in 1 cup cheese until melted.
  5. Add pasta; mix well.
  6. Pour into a greased 2 quart baking dish. Top with remaining cheese.
  7. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted and light brown.

About Stacy

Stacy is a Homemaking and Business Mom Mentor, the author of two cookbooks, creator of multiple e-courses, seasoned life coach, and comedian extraordinaire. Her first priority is her husband and her children - family first. She presses on each day because her calling is to teach, train, and mentor other ladies to have their dreams. She believes if it’s not easy, you won’t do it – because she’s lived it. She’ll bring YOU the awesome so that you can get your home back into control and watch your business soar. For tips and easy strategies, you can follow her on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the content above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase an item, I may receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Comments

  1. Allison says

    I know this is an older post but can you use real milk instead of evaporated? Does anyone know the conversion?

    Reply

    • Stacy says

      To make “regular” milk from evaporated, you usually cut it with water. For example, 1 cup regular milk = 1/2 cup evaporated milk + 1/2 cup water. Using evaporated milk in this recipe just makes it a lot creamier. Yum!

      Reply

  2. Krystyna says

    I have a pickly eater and was trying several homemade maccheeses and yours is a hit… really good. He sudgested that I melt all the cheese and not sprincle the top ;( The least amount of ingrediants, very quick to make, I love it.

    Reply

  4. Haylee says

    Hey Stacy! This looks yummy and I’m putting it on my list for the week but had a question. I know this is an old post but I’m hoping you’ll see this. When you say 1 2/3 c of macaroni do you mean cooked or uncooked? I’m assuming uncooked but just want to make sure.
    thanks a million!
    Haylee

    Reply

    • Stacy says

      Hi Haylee. 🙂 You’ll want to take 1 2/3 cup of dry macaroni and cook it. Sorry I wasn’t clear. 🙂 Enjoy it. It blows the boxed mix out of the water!

      Reply

  5. Danielle says

    I love it. Thanks! Not only am I a fan, my DH keeps asking me to make it. My EXTREMELY picky 8 year old LOVES it and he previously refused to eat all mac n cheese.

    Last night though, I used the cheese sauce from this recipe, added some chicken, peas, and rice instead of pasta and that was yummy too. The cheese sauce is just great!

    Reply