Fancy Mac and Cheese Recipe for Your Grownup Party Needs (2024)

By: Jessica Marcy

Fancy Mac and Cheese Recipe for Your Grownup Party Needs (1)

Who doesn’t love macaroni and cheese? It’s an age-old classic that many of us have fond memories of from childhood. But who says that mac and cheese has to be relegated to the kids table? We decided to take this classic and dress it up to make a fancy mac and cheese recipe just for adults. The decadent blend of cheeses and toppings take this from a kids dish to an adult’s new favorite.

Fancy Mac and Cheese Recipe for Your Grownup Party Needs (2)


With the image of a soothing, delicious, and uncomplicated macaroni and cheese in mind, we kept this recipe pretty simple and just elevated the ingredients. A blend of cheddar, gruyere, and pecorino cheeses is stirred into a classic béchamel sauce to create a perfectly creamy sauce. This blend creates a buttery, slightly nutty flavor that really changes the whole dish. This is a cheese sauce made for adults.
To finish it, we added buttered, spiced panko breadcrumbs and bacon crumbles to the top. Smoked paprika goes wonderfully with a well-smoked bacon and the decadent cheese sauce. The combination of smoke and spice is a fun addition to round out the creaminess of the overall dish; add more or less heat depending on your preference. The little bit of crunch supplied by the panko topping is the final touch to complete the package.

Fancy Mac and Cheese Recipe for Your Grownup Party Needs (3)

For the ultimate in evening comfort, wash down this dish with a cup of our Candlelight Blend white tea. Its hints of orange and champagne will be the perfect calming cap to round out your evening.
This mac and cheese is fancy enough to serve at your next party. Try preparing individual servings of it, or bake up small bites in a mini cupcake tin for a co*cktail party. Your guests will love it.
Want to take this fancy mac and cheese recipe to and even higher level? Add some sliced jalapenos, caramelized shallots, or pulled pork to the top before serving. You could even set out a few topping options and let your guests decide how they want to dress up their own dishes. You know we love a good buffet bar around here, so be sure to check out our Bagel Bar Brunch post for more inspiration.

Fancy Mac and Cheese Recipe for Your Grownup Party Needs (4)


Fancy Mac and Cheese


Ingredients:

  • 2 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
  • 2 cups elbow macaroni or cavatappi
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 4 ounces gruyere cheese, grated
  • 3 ounces extra-sharp cheddar, grated
  • 2 ounces pecorino cheese
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • Pinch nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • Pinch cayenne pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Cook the macaroni according to package instructions. Drain well and set aside.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a thick-bottomed sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and let it cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until it browns slightly. Reduce the heat to low and whisk in the milk until well blended. Cook for an additional minute until the sauce thickens.
Stir in the gruyere, cheddar, pecorino, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Allow the cheese to melt slightly and stir in the cooked macaroni. Pour into 2 individual-size gratin dishes.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a small bowl in the microwave. Add the panko, 1/4 teaspoon salt, smoked paprika, and cayenne pepper. Toss well to combine. Sprinkle the panko mixture over the top of the pasta.
Place in the oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.
Serve immediately.

Fancy Mac and Cheese Recipe for Your Grownup Party Needs (5)

Jessica Marcy

JC is from Upstate NY and is the blogger behind Sweet Love & Ginger. She believes in celebrating a healthy lifestyle and can be found enjoying the great outdoors, crafting, cooking and entertaining.

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Fancy Mac and Cheese Recipe for Your Grownup Party Needs (2024)

FAQs

How to fancy up mac and cheese? ›

8 Ways to Elevate Your Macaroni and Cheese Dinners
  1. Add extra cheese to your dish.
  2. Mix in some hot sauce and chicken to make buffalo chicken mac n' cheese.
  3. Add in vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower and spinach.
  4. Sprinkle some bacon bits or breadcrumbs on the top of your dish.
  5. Add spices and fresh herbs to your dish.
May 21, 2022

What is the best cheese for fancy mac and cheese? ›

Gruyere is a classic addition because it melts much like Cheddar, but has a lovely nutty flavor. Other classics include Gouda, Muenster, Parmesan, fontina, Havarti and Monterey Jack. Brie works well too, just make sure you remove the rind before mixing it in.

How to make Gordon Ramsay's mac and cheese? ›

Preparation
  1. In a large pot over medium heat, combine the pasta and milk. ...
  2. Once the pasta is cooked, remove the pan from the heat and add the butter, cheddar cheese, salt, and pepper. ...
  3. Divide between serving bowls and top with the bread crumbs.
  4. Enjoy!
  5. All your favorite recipes, stored in one place.
May 4, 2023

What to add to mac and cheese to make it better? ›

Here are a few of my favorite ways to upgrade boxed mac and cheese in three ingredients or fewer:
  1. Broccoli + Shredded Chicken. ...
  2. Bacon + Peas + Egg. ...
  3. Garlic + Pickled Jalapeños. ...
  4. Mushrooms + Thyme + Grated Gruyère. ...
  5. Pesto + Sun-Dried Tomatoes. ...
  6. Kimchi + Bacon + Chopped Scallions. ...
  7. Cherry Tomatoes + Basil + Mozzarella.

How to church up mac n cheese? ›

Butter: Butter adds tons of body and flavor to the sauce. It really helps it taste extra creamy and not just cheesy. Half and Half: Adding half and half to the macaroni does so much in amping up the creamy factor. If you don't have half and half, I'd recommend using whole milk.

What cheeses are not to use for mac and cheese? ›

Those preservatives keep the pieces from melting evenly, and you'll end up with gritty, lumpy mac & cheese. Dry, crumbly cheeses like feta or cotija are not ideal. With their high moisture levels, they don't melt properly and will leave you with clumps of cheese instead of a smooth sauce.

What is the fanciest cheese? ›

1. Pule Cheese - $600 Per Pound. Pule cheese is the most expensive cheese in the world because it is produced exclusively at Serbia's Zasavica Special Nature Reserve. This rare cheese is made from the milk of Balkan donkeys which are endangered and native to Serbia and Montenegro.

What kind of milk is best for mac and cheese? ›

Milk: Keeps our cheese sauce super creamy. I use whole milk or reduced-fat milk. Mustard and spices: A combination of Dijon mustard, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and salt makes this macaroni and cheese extra delicious. Cheese: I use white cheddar and parmesan or pecorino cheese.

What is Gordon Ramsay's famous recipe? ›

Gordon Ramsay's best recipes include Beef Wellington, Coq au Vin, Beef Stroganoff, Chicken Piccata, Rack of Lamb, Baked Salmon with Lemon and Dill, Shrimp Scampi, Beef and Guinness Stew, Spaghetti Carbonara, and Beef Burgundy.

Why add flour to baked mac and cheese? ›

Both the flour and the cheese help thicken the sauce.

What's in Bob Evans mac and cheese? ›

Cooked Enriched Pasta (Water, Elbow Macaroni [Semolina (Wheat), Niacin, Iron (Ferrous Sulfate), Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid]), Milk, Water, Pasteurized Process Cheese Spread (American Cheese [Pasteurized Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes], Water, Whey, Sodium Phosphate, Contains Less than 2% of ...

How do you keep mac and cheese creamy? ›

If you want a very creamy mac n' cheese, you can add Velveeta processed cheese or American cheese (from the deli) to your melted cheese base mixture. The American cheese provides the creaminess you are looking for, and when reheating the mac n' cheese add a little bit of milk.

How do you make mac and cheese creamy again? ›

The #1 secret to creamy reheated mac and cheese

"Stir in about 2 Tbs. of milk per 1 cup of mac and cheese and reheat," he says. The milk loosens up the pasta and helps create the creamy sauce as it's reheating. Heavy cream works well in this case too and adds an extra touch of richness to the mac and cheese.

What kind of pasta is best for mac and cheese? ›

By definition, classic macaroni and cheese should be made with, well, macaroni, a style broadly defined as any short, cylindrical extruded pasta. This includes tubes like ziti, penne, rigatoni and, yes, elbows, as well as corkscrew shapes like fusilli.

How to doctor up white cheddar mac and cheese? ›

We've got a few suggestions:
  1. Fresh Cracked Black Pepper. ...
  2. Finely Chopped White Onion and Buttery Herbed Breadcrumbs. ...
  3. The Hot Sauce of Your Choice. ...
  4. Taco-Seasoned Ground Beef and Sour Cream. ...
  5. Chopped Fresh Tomatoes and Peas with Tuna. ...
  6. Steamed Broccoli, Extra Cheddar, and Diced Ham. ...
  7. Bacon and Chives. ...
  8. Mushrooms, Spinach, and Ricotta.
Sep 28, 2018

How do you increase the flavor of cheese in mac and cheese? ›

Cayenne pepper is a classic seasoning that adds warmth and enhances the flavour of the cheese.

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