Moving away from boxed mac and cheese

[Anonymous]

Which is a family fave. Any child friendly recipes that is similar in texture? We made a gooey cheesy one that was in the oven forever but our kid didn't touch it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Which is a family fave. Any child friendly recipes that is similar in texture? We made a gooey cheesy one that was in the oven forever but our kid didn't touch it.

I'd love your recipe for this--sounds wonderful. (You might have to give the kids time to get used to the new one if they've usually only had the box.)

[Anonymous]

One of Alton Brown's better episodes is where he makes a traditional baked mac 'n cheese, his "son" gets mad at him, and then he also makes a box'd mac 'n cheese equivalent for kids. This is the kids recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/stove-top-mac-n-cheese-recipe.html

[Anonymous]

We make one that is essentially a mornay sauce with cheddar over macaroni (so there's no baking involved and the texture is probably closer to a box), but I have to say my kids don't like it because it doesn't taste like the box.

[Anonymous]

Would love the recipe for the gooey cheesy kind!

[Anonymous]

The key is, stop eating the boxed Mac and cheese for several months so you forget the exact taste of it, and call your homemade Mac n cheese something else so you're not comparing.

[Anonymous]

I've never had boxed mac and cheese so I can't compare.

Here is how I make them for my toddler and middle s hool kid:

1 heaping TBSP flour
2 cups milk
1 tsp mustard
salt and pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar
(sometimes I add a cup of spinach too)

Mix all in a blender and pour into a saucepan and heat until its a thick creamy sauce. Then I mix in the noodles.

[Anonymous]

The blender step seems kind of superfluous (except when you're using the spinach).

[Anonymous]

Use fun shaped pasta.

My kids prefer the homemade mac and cheese because they get to pick out whatever shaped pasta they want. Sometimes it is shells. Other times bowties, or corkscrews.

Maybe if you use a different noodle your kids will be less likely to compare.

[Anonymous]

I don't know if this is better or worse than the boxed mac n cheese, but in a pinch I have made this as a substitute:

Boil the pasta
Drain
Tear apart 2 slices of Kraft American Cheese (in the plastic wrappers)
Stir the cheese plus 1/2 tbs of butter in with the still warm pasta.
Thin with milk if necessary.

It tastes the same. Comparing the labels it appears to be healthier than the boxed mac n cheese.

It is super simple to make. You can probably use a healthier cheese, but you might need to up the butter or add a splash of milk to it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would love the recipe for the gooey cheesy kind!

Not that poster, but here is what I do:

Boil and drain one box of pasta of choice. Pour into a 9x13 ish glass baking dish

Mince 2 tbsp. of yellow onion and 2-3 green onions
Melt a stick of butter in a pot
Saute the onions until translucent over med-low heat
Turn heat to low. Stir in 1/4 cup of flour to make a rue
Stir in 3 cups of whole milk, turn heat to medium, bring to a simmer while stirring until it begins to thicken

Slowly add 3-3 1/2 cups assorted cheeses. I use Mexican Cheese blend, Cheddar blend, and also whatever else I have in my fridge. Sometimes swiss, Monterey jack, parmesan, Havarti, etc. You must have at least 2 cups of a yellow cheese for it to be good.

Simmer and stir until it thickens to about a gravy consistency and you start to get strings of cheese when you pull the spoon out. You don't want to have the heat too high because the cheese will separate instead of blending in.

Pour cheese mixture over the pasta in the baking dish and stir to make sure everything is covered.

Cover top with more shredded cheese.

You can also lightly brown some breadcrumbs in a tbsp. of butter and sprinkle on top.

Cover with foil.

Bake in a 375 oven until it starts to bubble, around 30-45 minutes.

Remove foil to let top cheese brown for another 15 minutes.

You might want to put foil on the shelf below because it will sometimes boil over.

[Anonymous]

forgot to add, season the cheese sauce with salt and pepper to taste before pouring over the pasta. We usually do more pepper than salt since the chees is already salty.

[Anonymous]

I think it is the salt in the Kraft Mac and Cheese box stuff that makes it so irresistible to kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it is the salt in the Kraft Mac and Cheese box stuff that makes it so irresistible to kids.

No.

It is that distinct orange goodness...taste like Cheetos.

[Anonymous]

Mix cheddar cheese and heavy cream on the stover. Stir in cooked pasta.