Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese

Some of you may have noticed that I temporarily stepped away from Luckywhisk.

I have been on a journey...

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a quest...

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searching high and low to find...the world's best macaroni and cheese...

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...and I will stop at nothing to find it...

Not really. I stopped writing for a bit to learn a new job and because well...2020. But now I'm back! And my kitchen is hopping. I've been trying a lot of new recipes lately that I can't wait to review for you.

Every time I think I have found THE best macaroni and cheese recipe, I end up trying another one that is as good or better. I am not sure if there even IS a world's greatest mac and cheese. It's like the Holy Grail or the Fountain of Youth- does it even exist? Is the finest version of our favorite comfort food a myth, never to be discovered? I have vowed to never give up the search. I am the Ponce de Leon of macaroni and cheese. 

Recently, I made a mac by the thechunkychef that truly rivals the great ones. What I love about it is that it didn't come out dry- it's creamy and extra cheesy. I made the version that calls for two cheeses, but the site shares a FIVE-CHEESE variation that you can try.  

When I say it's all about the Gruyere, I mean- it's all about the Gruyere.

I gathered together: 1 lb. dried elbow pasta, 1/2 c. unsalted butter, 1/2 c. flour, 1 1/2 c. whole milk, 2 1/2 c. half and half, 4 c. grated medium sharp cheddar cheese (divided), 2 c. grated Gruyere cheese, 1/2 Tbsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper, 1/4 tsp. paprika. 

Your first born will grow up, move out of the house and have a child of his own by the time you finish grating the cheese, but it's so worth it. I broke out my trusty plastic grater- purchased at a dollar store in Alabama twenty years ago while in college. Luckily, it won't decompose for another 1,000 years which means I can pass it down for generations to come.  Special thanks to Dollar Tree for this treasured family heirloom. 

Once you start to feel your old "tennis elbow" injury coming back from so much grating, it's time to cook the elbow pasta. I drizzled a little olive oil over it to keep it from sticking. 

I'll admit that at this point I got a little too excited and danced a little too much while whisking the milk and cheese. Pro tip- more stirring, less dancing. I blame today's song- youtu.be/_83KqwEEGw4 First I melted the butter over medium heat and combined it with the flour. I added the milk and half and half and whisked like no one's business, until it had a thick consistency.  

I removed it from the heat and added the spices and 1 1/2 c. of the cheeses. I stirred in another 1 1/2 of the cheese until it was nice and smooth.  

It's the stuff dreams are made of.

I mixed it all up with the pasta and poured  half of it into a 9 x 13" baking dish. I topped it with 1 1/2 c. of the grated cheese, the remaining pasta, and the remaining cheese. I forgot to add the paprika early on (dancing), panicked about that for about a minute, then decided to just sprinkle a bit on top of the grated cheese. 

I baked it for 15 min. 

**Reminder, you don't have to share any of this with anyone. You made it. It's yours. Tell them to make their own. Happy New Year, from Luckywhisk.

Check out thechunkychef for this recipe and more. I'm looking forward to trying her 30-min Easy Chicken Marsala.