Welcome to the ultimate indulgence! If you’ve been following my culinary journey, you know my passion for Southern baked mac and cheese is legendary. Since my signature recipe took the internet by storm in 2016, I’ve been honored with the title of ‘Queen of Mac and Cheese’. Today, I’m thrilled to share another masterpiece that will undoubtedly earn a permanent spot in your recipe collection: my irresistibly creamy, cheesy, and utterly delicious Bacon Mac and Cheese. This isn’t just any side dish; it’s a symphony of flavors, where every forkful promises a perfect blend of velvety cheese sauce, tender pasta, and the delightful crunch of crispy bacon. I’ve perfected this recipe over countless batches, ensuring it delivers consistent, show-stopping results in your kitchen every single time. Prepare to elevate your comfort food game with this spectacular dish that truly hits all the right notes.
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Bacon Mac and Cheese Ingredients
Creating truly exceptional homemade mac and cheese starts with selecting the right ingredients. This bacon mac and cheese recipe calls for a delightful blend of cheeses and pantry staples that contribute to its rich, creamy texture and unforgettable flavor. Here’s a closer look at what you’ll need and why each component is essential:
- Cheddar Cheese: A cornerstone of any good mac and cheese, cheddar brings a sharp, familiar tang. For an elevated experience, I highly recommend using smoked cheddar. Its smoky notes perfectly complement the bacon, adding an incredible depth of flavor that makes this dish truly special. Always opt for block cheese and shred it yourself for the best melting consistency.
- Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese: This hard, aged Italian cheese introduces a salty, umami kick and a fine texture that helps create a wonderfully smooth sauce. A little goes a long way in boosting the overall savory profile.
- Fontina Cheese: Known for its exceptional melting qualities, fontina contributes to the creamy, stretchy texture of the cheese sauce. It has a mild, nutty flavor that harmonizes beautifully with the other cheeses without overpowering them.
- Gouda Cheese: The star alongside bacon in this recipe! Gouda, especially smoked gouda, provides a rich, slightly sweet, and distinctively creamy flavor. Its unique character is what truly makes this “bacon gouda mac and cheese” shine, adding sophistication to every bite.
- Muenster Cheese: Muenster is a semi-soft cheese with a mild, buttery flavor and excellent melting properties, ensuring an incredibly smooth and cohesive cheese sauce. Its subtle taste allows the stronger cheeses and bacon to truly stand out.
- Elbow Macaroni Pasta: The classic choice for mac and cheese, elbow macaroni’s curved shape and ridges are perfect for capturing and holding onto that luscious cheese sauce. You want a pasta that can stand up to baking without becoming mushy.
- Milk (Whole or 2%): Milk forms the base of our béchamel sauce. Whole milk or 2% milk provides the ideal fat content for a rich, creamy sauce that won’t separate. While other types of milk can be used, aim for higher fat content for the best results.
- Flour: Combined with butter, flour creates the roux, which thickens our cheese sauce to perfection. This simple mixture is key to a stable, smooth sauce.
- Butter: Essential for both flavor and creating the roux. Use unsalted butter to control the seasoning of your dish.
- Bacon: The hero ingredient! Crispy, salty bacon bits are folded into the mac and cheese, adding an incredible texture and a smoky, savory punch. Always cook your bacon until perfectly crisp before crumbling.
- Breadcrumbs: A golden, crispy breadcrumb topping adds a delightful contrast in texture and a beautiful finish to your baked mac and cheese. Panko breadcrumbs are a great choice for extra crunch.
- Seasonings: Salt, pepper, and onion powder are the foundational spices that enhance all the other flavors. Adjust these to your taste preferences.
How to Make Bacon Mac and Cheese
Crafting this incredible Bacon Mac and Cheese is a straightforward process, combining classic techniques with flavorful layering to achieve maximum deliciousness. Follow these steps for a perfect outcome:
- Prepare Your Oven: Begin by preheating your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius). This ensures it’s ready for baking as soon as your mac and cheese is assembled.
- Cook the Macaroni: Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a rolling boil over high heat. Add the elbow macaroni and cook for approximately 5 minutes. The goal here is to undercook the pasta slightly, as it will continue to cook in the oven. This prevents a mushy texture.
- Rinse the Pasta: Immediately drain the macaroni and rinse it thoroughly with cold water. This crucial step stops the cooking process, preventing the pasta from becoming overcooked and ensuring a desirable al dente texture even after baking.
- Start the Roux: In a separate saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Once the butter is fully melted and slightly foamy, add the flour. Whisk continuously for 1-2 minutes until a smooth paste, or roux, forms. This roux is the thickening agent for your cheese sauce.
- Create the Béchamel: Gradually pour the milk into the roux, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Continue to stir until the mixture thickens slightly and begins to bubble gently.
- Melt the Cheese: Add half of your shredded cheese blend to the béchamel sauce. Stir until the cheese is completely melted and the sauce is smooth and creamy.
- Season the Sauce: Season the cheese sauce with salt, black pepper, and onion powder. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed. Remember, you want a well-seasoned sauce to ensure the entire dish is flavorful. Don’t be shy about tasting throughout this process!
- Combine Pasta and Sauce: Return the cooled, drained pasta to the large pot. Drizzle the warm, creamy cheese sauce over the macaroni and stir gently until every piece of pasta is evenly coated.
- Prepare the Baking Dish: Lightly spray a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray to prevent sticking.
- Layer the Mac and Cheese: Begin building your layers in the prepared baking dish. Start with a layer of the sauced pasta. Then, add a generous layer of the remaining shredded cheeses, scattering the small muenster chunks throughout.
- Repeat Layers: Add another layer of pasta, followed by another layer of the mixed cheeses. Ensure you save a good amount of shredded cheese for the top layer.
- Ensure Adequate Moisture: This is a critical step for baked mac and cheese! As you layer, make sure there’s enough liquid throughout the dish. If it appears dry, add a splash of additional milk or a little of the reserved pasta water (if you saved any) to moisten the mixture. You want the consistency to be creamy, not soupy, but definitely not dry, as it will dry out further during baking.
- Top with Bacon: Evenly sprinkle the cooked and crumbled bacon over the final layer of cheese.
- Add Breadcrumbs: Finish by sprinkling the breadcrumbs evenly over the bacon and cheese for a golden, crunchy crust.
- Bake to Perfection: Place the baking dish in the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the mac and cheese is bubbly, the cheese is melted, and the breadcrumbs are golden brown.
- Cool Before Serving: Allow the baked mac and cheese to cool for at least 10-15 minutes before serving. This allows the sauce to set slightly, preventing it from being too runny and ensuring perfect, creamy portions. Enjoy your homemade bacon mac and cheese!
Tips for the Perfect Bacon Mac and Cheese
To truly master this ultimate comfort food, keep these expert tips in mind. They’ll ensure your Bacon Mac and Cheese is consistently creamy, perfectly cheesy, and utterly irresistible:
- Shred Your Own Cheese: This is arguably the most important tip. Pre-shredded cheeses are often coated with anti-caking agents like cellulose, which can prevent them from melting smoothly and result in a grainy sauce. Buying blocks of cheese and shredding them yourself yields a far creamier, silkier cheese sauce.
- Don’t Overcook the Pasta: Boil your elbow macaroni for about 2 minutes less than the package directions. It will continue to cook in the hot cheese sauce and then again in the oven. Al dente pasta before baking ensures it stays firm and doesn’t turn mushy.
- Rinse Pasta with Cold Water: After draining, rinsing the pasta with cold water immediately stops the cooking process. This is crucial for preventing overcooked, gummy pasta and ensures the perfect texture in the final baked dish.
- Cook Bacon Crispy: No one wants chewy bacon in their mac and cheese! Cook your bacon until it’s perfectly crisp. Crumble it into small pieces so you get a savory crunch in every bite.
- Taste and Season the Sauce: Don’t just follow the recipe blindly for seasonings. Taste your cheese sauce as you go and adjust salt, pepper, and onion powder to your preference. A well-seasoned sauce makes all the difference.
- Maintain Sauce Consistency: The cheese sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon but still pourable. If it’s too thick, add a splash more milk. If too thin, let it simmer gently for a few more minutes to reduce, whisking constantly.
- Adequate Liquid for Baking: When layering the pasta and cheese in the baking dish, ensure there’s enough liquid. The mixture shouldn’t be dry, as the oven’s heat will absorb moisture. A little extra milk or reserved pasta water can prevent a dry outcome. It should look creamy and moist before it goes into the oven.
- Let it Rest: Once baked, resist the urge to dig in immediately. Letting the mac and cheese rest for 10-15 minutes allows the sauce to set and thicken slightly, preventing a runny dish and ensuring cleaner, more satisfying servings.
- Experiment with Bacon Grease: For an extra layer of smoky flavor, after cooking your bacon, you can reserve a tablespoon or two of the rendered bacon grease and stir it into your roux or cheese sauce. This adds a depth that’s hard to beat!
Pair With These Recipes
This rich and flavorful Bacon Mac and Cheese is hearty enough to be a meal on its own, but it also makes an incredible side dish that complements a variety of Southern-inspired main courses and vegetables. Here are some fantastic recipes that will create a truly memorable feast:
- Stuffed Turkey Legs: The smoky richness of the turkey legs will be a perfect companion to the creamy mac and cheese.
- Southern Mustard Greens: A vibrant, slightly bitter side dish that cuts through the richness of the mac and cheese, offering a delightful balance.
- Southern Cornbread Dressing: For the ultimate comfort food spread, this savory dressing and the mac and cheese are a match made in heaven.
- Southern Homemade Classic Cornbread: A warm slice of classic cornbread is ideal for soaking up any leftover cheese sauce.
- Scalloped Corn: Another creamy, comforting side that blends beautifully with the flavors of bacon and cheese.
- Cornbread Casserole: A hearty and flavorful casserole that makes for a fantastic pairing alongside this baked mac and cheese.
- Southern Black Eyed Peas: A traditional and wholesome side, perfect for rounding out a Southern-inspired meal.
- Grand Marnier Cranberry Sauce: A touch of sweetness and tartness from this unique cranberry sauce can provide a refreshing contrast.
More Mac and Cheese Recipes
As the self-proclaimed ‘Queen of Mac and Cheese,’ my repertoire extends far beyond this delicious bacon version. If you love discovering new twists on this beloved classic, you’ll be thrilled with these other fantastic mac and cheese recipes, each offering a unique flavor profile and experience:
- Simple Stovetop Mac and Cheese: Perfect for those times when you need a quick, creamy, and satisfying mac and cheese without the baking.
- Smoked Mac and Cheese: Infused with incredible smoky flavor, this recipe takes comfort food to a whole new level for barbecue enthusiasts.
- Lobster Mac and Cheese: An opulent and decadent dish that combines rich cheese sauce with luxurious lobster for a gourmet experience.
- Seafood Mac and Cheese: A flavorful medley of various seafood (shrimp, crab, etc.) folded into a creamy, cheesy pasta for a delightful oceanic twist.
- Slow Cooker Chili Mac and Cheese: A hearty, set-it-and-forget-it meal that combines the warmth of chili with the comfort of mac and cheese.
- Seafood Stuffed Pasta Shells: While not strictly mac and cheese, these jumbo shells filled with a creamy seafood mixture offer a similar comforting appeal.
- Chicken Mac and Cheese: A satisfying meal where tender chicken pieces are mixed into a classic mac and cheese for added protein and flavor.
Bacon Mac and Cheese Recipe
Brandi Crawford
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Equipment
- 9×13 Baking Dish
- Freezer Soup Molds
Ingredients
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 cup Parmigiano Reggiano shredded
- 1 cup fontina cheese shredded
- 2 cups gouda cheese shredded (smoked gouda recommended)
- ½ cup muenster cheese cut into small chunks
- 1 pound elbow macaroni
- 3-4 cups whole milk or 2% milk use your judgment for desired consistency
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 slices of bacon cooked until crispy and crumbled
- 2 tablespoons breadcrumbs (Panko or whole wheat preferred)
- salt, black pepper, and onion powder to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190°C).
- Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil over high heat.
- Add the elbow macaroni to the boiling water and cook for about 5 minutes, ensuring it remains slightly undercooked (al dente).
- Drain the macaroni immediately and rinse it thoroughly with cold water. This crucial step stops the cooking process and prevents the pasta from becoming mushy, which can ruin the texture of your baked mac and cheese.
- In a separate saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Once the butter is melted and slightly foamy, add the flour and whisk constantly for 1-2 minutes until a smooth roux forms. This will be the thickening base for your cheese sauce.
- Gradually add the milk to the roux, whisking continuously to ensure a smooth, lump-free sauce. Continue to stir until the mixture thickens slightly and begins to simmer.
- Add half of your mixed shredded cheese blend to the sauce and stir until it’s completely melted and smooth.
- Season the cheese sauce with salt, black pepper, and onion powder to taste. Sample the sauce and adjust the seasonings as necessary.
- Return the cooled pasta to the large pot. Pour the warm cheese sauce over the pasta and stir thoroughly until every piece of macaroni is evenly coated.
- Lightly spray a 9×13 inch baking pan with cooking spray.
- Begin layering the mac and cheese in the prepared baking dish. Start with a layer of the sauced pasta, then add a layer of the remaining shredded cheese and scatter half of the muenster chunks.
- Add another layer of pasta, followed by the remaining shredded cheese and muenster chunks. Ensure you leave enough cheese for a generous top layer.
- Crucially, make sure there is adequate liquid throughout the layers. If the dish looks dry, add a splash of extra milk or a bit of reserved pasta water. The goal is a creamy, not watery or dry, consistency to prevent the mac and cheese from drying out during baking.
- Evenly distribute the crispy crumbled bacon over the top layer of cheese.
- Sprinkle the breadcrumbs evenly across the top for a golden, crunchy crust.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the mac and cheese is bubbly and the topping is golden brown.
- Allow the dish to cool for 10-15 minutes before serving. This resting time helps the sauce to set, ensuring perfect, creamy portions.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Data
Macros are provided as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. This information is calculated using MyFitnessPal.com. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information provided is accurate, complete, and useful.
Frequently Asked Questions and Recipe Pro Tips
Here are answers to some common questions and essential tips to help you perfect your Bacon Mac and Cheese every time:
Absolutely, you can use regular sharp cheddar cheese, and your mac and cheese will still be delicious. However, the blend of gouda, fontina, Parmigiano Reggiano, and muenster is specifically chosen to create an exceptionally creamy, rich, and slightly smoky flavor profile that truly makes this recipe stand out. If you choose to simplify, opting for a high-quality sharp cheddar is key to retaining that bold cheesy bite. Consider pairing it with a smoked cheese, even a smoked provolone, for a similar depth of flavor.
Yes, it’s absolutely essential to cook the bacon until it’s perfectly crispy before incorporating it into your mac and cheese. This ensures you get that delightful crunchy texture in every bite, preventing it from becoming soggy or chewy during baking. As a pro tip, consider reserving a tablespoon or two of the rendered bacon grease and stirring it into your cheese sauce. This adds an incredible, savory depth of flavor that elevates the entire dish.
Yes, this dish can be prepped in advance, which is great for entertaining or busy days. Assemble the mac and cheese in your baking dish (without the breadcrumb topping) up to a day before you plan to bake it. Cover the dish tightly with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate. When you’re ready to cook, uncover, sprinkle with breadcrumbs, and bake as directed, potentially adding an extra 5-10 minutes to the baking time since it will be chilled. If the sauce seems a bit too thick after refrigeration, stir in a splash of milk before baking to restore its creamy consistency.
For an unparalleled depth of flavor that perfectly complements the bacon, I highly recommend using smoked gouda. Its rich, nutty, and subtly smoky notes create an extraordinary pairing with the crispy bacon, making this mac and cheese truly exceptional. If smoked gouda isn’t available, regular gouda will still work wonderfully, offering its characteristic creamy and mild sweetness. A crucial tip for any cheese in this recipe: always buy block cheese and shred it yourself. Pre-shredded cheeses often contain anti-caking agents that can lead to a grainy or clumpy sauce, whereas freshly shredded cheese melts into a beautifully smooth and velvety texture.
You can freeze this mac and cheese, but for the absolute best texture and flavor, it’s always ideal to enjoy it fresh. If freezing, allow the baked mac and cheese to cool completely. Store individual portions or the entire dish in an airtight, freezer-safe container. It can be frozen for up to 2-3 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Then, gently reheat in the oven or microwave, adding a splash of milk as needed to bring the sauce back to its creamy, luscious state. Be aware that the pasta texture might be slightly softer after freezing and thawing.
The secret to a silky-smooth, non-grainy cheese sauce lies in a few key techniques. First, always shred your own cheese from blocks, avoiding pre-shredded varieties. Second, when melting the cheese into your béchamel sauce, keep the heat low and melt it slowly, stirring continuously. High heat can cause the proteins in the cheese to seize and separate, leading to a grainy texture. Finally, ensure your béchamel is smooth and lump-free before adding the cheese. Gradual additions and constant stirring are your best friends here.
While elbow macaroni is the quintessential choice for its ability to perfectly cradle the creamy sauce, many other short pasta shapes work wonderfully for baked mac and cheese. Excellent alternatives include cavatappi (corkscrew pasta), medium shells, rotini, or even penne. The key is to choose a pasta with nooks, ridges, or a tubular shape that can effectively hold onto the rich cheese sauce and stand up to baking without becoming overly soft.