Ingredients:

Directions:

1. Cook elbows according to package directions in plenty of lightly salted boiling water. Drain but do not rinse.

2. Meanwhile, whisk the flour with 1/2 cup of the milk in a saucepan off the heat until the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the remaining milk and place over medium high. Cook, whisking occasionally for the first 4 minutes; and frequently until the mixture begins to thicken. Once it is the thickness of whole milk—it will leave a thin coating on the spoon– whisk constantly until it is slightly thicker than heavy cream. (The entire process can take from 8 to 12 minutes). Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the cheese until smooth.

3. Toss the sauce with the pasta and serve.

Variations and Extras:

Irresistible Buttery Breadcrumb Topping: transfer cooked macaroni and cheese to an 11 x 7 baking dish coated with cooking spray. Combine 2 ounces melted butter with 1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs and 1 cup grated cheddar cheese. Bake at 400 degrees F until the top is golden, about 5-7 minutes.

Hearty meatless Tex- Mex meal: Toss the cooked pasta with a can of drained, rinsed beans and prepared salsa, add the cheese sauce and top with chopped cilantro.

Veggie Love (two-ways): Add leftover cooked broccoli, green beans, cauliflower or whatever other vegetables you have on hand to the prepared mac and cheese. No leftover vegetables? No problem– in the last 4 minutes of cooking the pasta, add cut-up vegetables into the pot with the elbows. This works equally well with fresh and frozen veggies. (Follow package directions for cooking time on frozen vegetables).

Make a superfast, super-easy one-pot meal: Add leftover chopped chicken, turkey, beef or pork and a matching fresh or frozen vegetable, such as peas, broccoli, spinach, carrots, etc. Cook the vegetables with the pasta (as described above); the meat will get warm when tossed with the mac and cheese.

Special Occasion Mac and Cheese with Bacon and Roasted Tomato: Halve a pint of cherry tomatoes, toss with one tablespoon of olive oil and roast on a baking sheet pan at 350 until wilted, about 30-35 minutes. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a saucepan; set bacon aside and pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat. Stir in 1/4 cup of flour and 1/4 cup milk until smooth. Proceed with recipe above but substitute 1/2 cup of the remaining milk with cream and using cheddar cheese. Toss the cooked pasta and sauce with the crumbled bacon and roasted tomatoes; top with Buttery Breadcrumb Topping above.

Source: kerrygoldusa.com