Southern Style Macaroni And Cheese

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword cheez-whiz-macaroni-and-cheese, southern-style-macaroni-and-cheese

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1 5

Servings servings

Calories 380kcal

Author Melissa Sperka

Ingredients

2 cup dry elbow macaroni
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups shredded medium cheddar cheese Or one 8 oz block, cubed
2 cups whole milk
1 10 3/4 oz can cheddar cheese soup
3/4 cup Cheez Whiz or Velveeta cheese (easy melt from a jar)
1/2 cup sour cream
4 Tbsp melted butter (plus additional 2 Tbsp softened butter for the top)
2 large eggs
1 tsp ground mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
In a medium size pot, cook the elbow macaroni in salted boiling water until al dente. Drain well.
In a blender or in a food processor, blend together the milk, sour cream, cheddar cheese soup, cheez whiz, eggs, melted butter, white pepper, ground mustard, and salt. (You can also do this with a hand mixer.)
Layer one half of the cooked macaroni in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 1/4 cups each of the shredded cheddar cheese.
Spread the last of the cooked elbow macaroni over the cheese layer.
Pour the cheese sauce evenly over the macaroni. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese on top. Dot the top with butter.
Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. Serve immediately.

Notes

Cheez Whiz -The sauce for this mac and cheese is designed to be easy, hence the use of cheez whiz and cheddar cheese soup. It's one of MANY ways to make it, and you'll love the ease of preparation on a busy day. You could also use a jar of Velveeta cheese.
Pasta -You could make this recipe using jumbo macaroni, corkscrew pasta, twisted macaroni, medium shells or any short variety of pasta.
Cheese - While I'm partial to the cheese blend used in this recipe, you could adapt the flavor of shredded cheese, using extra sharp cheddar cheese, mozzarella, gouda, fontina, swiss, colby jack cheese, monterey jack or even Gruyere cheese, if you're feeling fancy.
Cubed Cheese - You may opt to cube (instead of shredding) one 8 ounce block of medium cheddar cheese. Stir it into the sauce for pockets of melty cheese.
Pre-Shredded Cheese Timesaver - You can use a pre-shredded blend of cheddar cheese from the dairy section of the grocery store. Typically it's a combination of mild, medium and sharp cheddar cheese. Any combination of cheese will work in the same amount. The cheese you have available use that flavor, and keep it simple.
Seasonings - You could sprinkle the top with a light dusting of smoked paprika for a hint of color or add a dash of cayenne to the sauce.
Use a Large Bowl - Rather than layering the ingredients, you can pour the macaroni with the sauce into a large bowl to mix it together. Pour half into the dish, sprinkle with cheese and finish with the remaining macaroni mixture. Add the top layer of cheese and butter per the recipe.
Bread Crumb Topping - While I typically don't add a crumb topping to this particular variation of macaroni and cheese, you could, if you wanted to. To do so, toss 1/2-1 cup of panko breadcrumbs with 1-2 Tbsp melted butter and sprinkle on top before baking. You may also like to use fresh breadcrumbs or even crushed cracker crumbs, if that's what you have on hand.
Spice - You could add a few dashes of hot sauce or pickled diced jalapeños for a spicy kick.

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