Grown-Up Gluten-Free Mac ‘n Cheese

One of the things we do for fun around here is watch the Food Network. With a high-def wide screen tv, the food looks so amazingly good. Crisp images. It’s like you can reach out and touch it.

The other night, we were watching a program and the chef was making mac ‘n cheese. Not even close to the nasty fake yellow boxed garbage that most associate with this dish. This was just swimming in a fantastic cheese sauce with garlic croutons on top.

Yum.

Of course, I had to make my own after watching that! I did a brief google search and found a few recipes and then set off to create my own version. The photo above was taken midway through the meal. My camera batteries died after that one shot and we couldn’t find any replacements so with fingers crossed, I inserted the new ones this morning and hoped for the best. Once the meal was finished, there were just a few scoops left… thirds and even fourths were enjoyed by more than one person.

This is a super cheesy and dairy filled meal. I used a variety of different cheeses but you could just use cheddar if you were so inclined. Any gluten-free bread should work with this – the drier and more stale it is, the better.

Enjoy!

Grown-Up Gluten-Free Mac ‘n Cheese
makes 13×9 casserole dish

1 pound gluten-free noodles, I used penne noodles
3-4 cups gluten-free bread cubes
1 cup butter
5 cups half and half (can sub some of this out with milk if needed)
1/2 cup gluten-free flour
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
8 ounces extra sharp white cheddar, grated
8 ounces emmenthaler or gruyere, grated
8 ounces italian blend (parmesan, romano, etc), grated

Butter a 13×9 baking pan. Set aside.

Boil pasta until al dente (slight bite and chew). Drain, run under cool water, and set aside.

Melt 1/2 cup butter in large bowl and toss with bread cubes and 1 tsp garlic powder. Set aside.

In large pot over medium heat melt butter with salt, pepper, garlic powder, nutmeg. Whisk in gluten-free flour and slowly pour in half and half. Stir constantly to keep from scorching. Cook until mixture thickens and comes to a slow boil. Remove from heat.

Combine grated cheeses and add all but 1 – 1 1/2 cups to the cream base. Stir well to blend.

Add noodles to cheese sauce and mix until coated. Pour into casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese and bread cubes. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes or until bubbly and hot.

Remove from oven and let stand 5-10 minutes before serving. Serve and enjoy!

Once you’ve made this grown-up version, your family will never again be satisfied with the boxed version. Just fair warning…