Martha Stewart's Macaroni and Cheese

Recipes

Posted by Adam Kuban, December 17, 2007 at 2:00 PM

And here's the first of the week's recipes from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The Original Classics. It's one of my all-time favorites and, in fact, has taken up residence among a coterie of of recipes taped to the back of the cabinet door nearest my stove—though, really, I've made it so often I usually don't need to reference it anymore. If prepared as detailed below, it will serve about 12 people, but I often halve the recipe if I'm not cooking for a crowd—it will still yield more than enough creamy, rich mac and cheese. And, because she says it each time I mention this recipe, the GF says it tastes even better the next day.

Macaroni and Cheese 101

- serves 12 -
Adapted from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The Original Classics.

Ingredients

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for casserole
6 slices white bread, crusts removed, torn into 1/4- to l/2-inch pieces
5 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons coarse salt, plus more for water
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar cheese
2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated Gruyère or 1 1/4 cups (about 5 ounces) grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 pound elbow macaroni

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a 3-quart casserole dish; set aside. Place the bread in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Pour the melted butter into the bowl with the bread, and toss. Set the breadcrumbs aside.

2. Warm the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When the butter bubbles, add the flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.

3. While whisking, slowly pour in the hot milk a little at a time to keep mixture smooth. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick, 8 to 12 minutes.

4. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar cheese, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyère (or 1 cup Pecorino Romano); set the cheese sauce aside.

5. Cover a large pot of salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook the macaroni until the outside of pasta is cooked and the inside is underdone, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Stir the macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.

6. Pour the mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Gruyère (or 1/4 cup Pecorino Romano), and the breadcrumbs over the top. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Transfer the dish to a wire rack for 5 minutes; serve.

29 Comments | Tags: comfort food, Cook the Book, macaroni and cheese, Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart Original Classics, vegetarian

29 Comments:

This recipe has a devoted underground following. In our house, it's referred to as "$30 mac and cheese" because of the raw ingredient price, or "crack and cheese" for its addictive properties.

jccvi at 3:00PM on 12/17/07

Oh. Heh. Yeah. I should have mentioned that. Around the MSL offices, it was known as the $40 mac and cheese. Although, I find I can make it for less than that. Then again, I typically halve it, as I said.

Adam Kuban at 3:06PM on 12/17/07

Ugh my wife and I can finish a pan in two days...

bobbob at 3:10PM on 12/17/07

I, along with the other dietitians at the hospital, privately share our love for this Mac & Cheese...and secretly promise to never share the recipe with our patients :)

JEP at 3:47PM on 12/17/07

Even though I consider myself a decent cook and have cooked for years for my relatives, it is this macaroni and cheese that gets the most requests. A superlative recipe; I might add that whatever qualms you might have with MS and her idiosyncracies, I've always found her recipes to be some of the best in the biz in terms of reliability. This macaroni and cheese is a great example.

dawgbite at 3:59PM on 12/17/07

I love this recipe... and like Adam, I usually halve it... so good...and yes... on the spendy side, but well worth it. I made this recently for family members and they absolutely loved it.

Alm25 at 4:17PM on 12/17/07

this is the best mac and cheese recipe...make sure you get the sharpest chedder though!

NYminknit at 4:22PM on 12/17/07

This is the first time I've seen the MS recipe; I'm partial to the one that Saveur printed many years ago, which also uses the three cheese approach, but in equal amounts. I'm curious, though...the cheese sauce doesn't separate once you 'set it aside'? I usually make the pasta first and let it wait while I make the sauce...

Curlz at 5:34PM on 12/17/07

Oh man, that reminds me that I haven't had a good mac and cheese in a long while. It's my comfort food.

mellifluousmelody at 8:34PM on 12/17/07

I want this right now. My experience with the other MS recipes I've tried is that they don't need any tweaking, they are perfect. My guess is that her perfectionist nature spills into her test kitchen and therefore her recipes are foolproof. I would love to win her book! Since mac and cheese is a big family favorite, I can't wait to try it - maybe I'll make it at the in-laws' over Christmas!

Jeana at 9:19PM on 12/17/07

Is this a slice-able cakey Mac n Cheese, or is it a creamy, saucy macaroni and cheese?

ag3208 at 10:35PM on 12/17/07

Somewhere in between, but more on the creamy saucy side.

Adam Kuban at 10:41PM on 12/17/07

It's slice-able the next day :)

bobbob at 10:26AM on 12/18/07

Yes, bobbob, that's correct. It's sliceable the next day, simply due to the fact that it's been in the fridge. I was going to mention that, but I figured it was kind of a "cheat" way to make it sliceable.

Adam Kuban at 11:23AM on 12/18/07

I've been making this mac for years, and even blogged about it a couple of years ago to celebrate MS's release from prison. It really is the best.

Julie at 10:26PM on 12/18/07

We made it last night - our first time making mac n'cheese, and it was sooo good. We go to S'Mac when we crave mac n'cheese - not anymore. A friend dropped by during dinner time, and he had some and asked for a doggy bag. The leftover was even better! Thank you for posting.

ynot4me at 6:53PM on 12/23/07

Pecorino Romano, NOT parmigiano reggiano?

DeepCreekPagan at 6:03PM on 03/02/08

Martha's mac and cheese is the best. I have been making it for several years. Before baking, I put half of the recipe in 12 Oz souffle bowls with lids and freeze them. It freezes great. It sure beats the frozen mac and cheese!

cyberma at 3:45PM on 03/11/08

This is similar to my favorite mac and cheese recipe from The Vegetarian Epicure cookbook. Add a dash of thyme and a bay leaf to the milk while it's heating up for extra flavor. Don't forget to take the bay leaf out before mixing the milk with the other ingredients.

cook4twins at 9:05PM on 03/11/08

I'm so happy about what these comments have said! I can't wait to make this now! I've been on a hunt, trying SO many recipes to find my ideal mac and cheese. Something ultra cheesy, with all fantastic quality ingredients, that has a cheezy-melty-stringy-oozey sauce. The good news about all the recipes I've tried: I took something away from each one! All I need is to find the right texture... Here's to hoping this one's it!

piratemptress at 10:55PM on 03/13/08

I tried this recipe for the first time a couple of nights ago------I now call it "Four Tears Mac and Cheese"---------

The first tear is for the amount of money I spent on the ingredients

The second tear is for the preparation

The third tear is because I never tried it before

and

The fourth tear is for the clean-up afterwards

THIS IS FABULOUS!

Karen Puerta at 6:50PM on 03/19/08

This is the MOST requested recipe from MS. I've received her mailings and e-mails and as has been mentioned, " her perfectionist nature spills into her test kitchen and therefore her recipes are foolproof". This recipe seems to be proof of that. I didn't dare try to tweak it.

yoyo1198 at 1:55PM on 03/23/08

The only change to this STELLAR recipe that I recommend is to increase the milk to 6 cups in order to make the mix "soupier" and the end result (and subsequent fabulous leftovers) moister.

Otherwise... the PERFECT baked mac & cheese!

AuntJenny at 9:58PM on 03/23/08

I must admit that my Mac n Cheese usually leaves alot to be desired. So I was just wonder if anyone had a suggestion as to an alternative for the expensive ingredients in this particular recipe until i can perfect it?

Nayzgrl at 2:52PM on 03/29/08

For those who have made this..which brand of cheddar did you use? Has anyone tried it with a small batch or artisanal cheddar? What about the G
ruyere? Also how could it possibly cost thirty bucks?? I am guessing 15-20.

izzy's mama at 9:29PM on 04/01/08

My feeling is the cheddar doesn't matter, as long as it is sharp. Regarding the Gruyere, we opted for Kraft shredded Swiss (at less than $5 per lb, as opposed to Gruyere at $16 a lb). The Gruyere might be better, but the shredded Swiss was fine and the finished product was still the best I have ever tasted! It is the ONLY M&C that we will ever make again. Perfection!

Stevie Bee at 9:04PM on 04/02/08

What is the difference between white sharp cheddar cheese and yellow sharp cheddar cheese? Does it matter which one of these you use in Martha Stewarts recipe? Also, is it better to use the 2 cups Gruyere or the 1 1/4 cups Pecorino Romano? I plan to make this recipe very soon and would hate to mess it up by using the wrong cheeses...Thanks for any help!

skyljord at 3:53AM on 04/10/08

cheese is NOT expensive, even good cheese. shop around for better prices. if people consider $40 for a meal that feeds 6 people (since its often halved) expensive, try going to a restaurant with that group and see how much each person spends.

this is a deal.

msvickji at 10:13PM on 04/13/08

Has anyone ever tried this with crab? I am on a mission to find a better Mac n' Cheese recipe, but I usually add crab to whatever recipe I use. I will be trying this as soon as I find crab - I just moved to Israel...

cowprintrabbit at 7:00AM on 05/13/08

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