Charlie's Wicked Mac & Cheese
I thought I would share this in time for the Holidays, It’s my adaptation of a Paula Deen recipe. I've been making it for a couple of years, usually bringing it to parties for family or friends. It makes a great side for any Holiday meal. It’s delicious, easy, and reheats beautifully if you make it ahead of time or serve it with leftovers. There are lots of great Mac & Cheese dishes out there but for us the combination of incredible flavor with how easy it is to put together, makes this our go-to Mac & Cheese. I hope you enjoy it and let me know how you adjust this recipe to make it your favorite Mac & Cheese!
Charlie's Wicked Mac & Cheese
I thought I would share this in time for the Holidays, It’s my adaptation of a Paula Deen recipe. I've been making it for a couple of years, usually bringing it to parties for family or friends. It makes a great side for any Holiday meal. It’s delicious, easy, and reheats beautifully if you make it ahead of time or serve it with leftovers. There are lots of great Mac & Cheese dishes out there but for us the combination of incredible flavor with how easy it is to put together, makes this our go-to Mac & Cheese. I hope you enjoy it and let me know how you adjust this recipe to make it your favorite Mac & Cheese!
Cooking Instructions
- 1
Put a large pot of water on high heat, bring to a boil, salt the water to your liking.
- 2
While the water is coming to a boil, turn your slow cooker on to LOW.
- 3
Into the slow cooker, add condensed cheddar cheese soup, water, milk, sour cream, eggs, salt, pepper, onion powder, roasted garlic powder, and mustard. Use a whisk to gently combine everything.
- 4
In a medium nonstick saucepan, add the butter and cheese. Then over medium-low heat, melt and stir together until combined.
- 5
Add the macaroni to the boiling water. Follow the package directions for cooking times but remember to use the minimum cook time. You want the macaroni under cooked by a couple of minutes. There should still be a white uncooked center to the pasta when you drain it. The pasta will continue to cook in the slow cooker. If you fully cook the pasta in the water your Mac & Cheese will be mushy. The Barilla elbow macaroni I use doesn’t cook for longer than 4 minutes.
- 6
Once the cheese and butter is melted together as seen in this photo add it right away to the slow cooker and again use a whisk to gently combine everything.
- 7
Once the pasta is cooked. Reserve about 2 cups of the pasta water to adjust sauce consistency later.
- 8
Drain the pasta and add it directly to the slow cooker.
- 9
Add a ¼ cup of the pasta water to the slow cooker, and gently stir to combine the macaroni with cheese sauce.
- 10
Cover and cook on low for 1 to 1.5 hours depending on your slow cooker. Make sure to stir the mac & cheese every 15-20 minutes until cooked.
- 11
The sauce will have reduced and the pasta will be coated in the sauce, not swimming in it. When cooked it will look like the attached photo.
- 12
Add additional pasta water to adjust the consistency to your liking. Taste and season with salt and pepper to your liking.
- 13
Sprinkle seasoned panko breadcrumbs on top and serve from slow cooker or move the cooked mac & cheese to a 9x12 casserole dish. Sprinkle panko breadcrumbs on top and brown in a 400°F degree oven for 15-20 minutes before serving.
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