Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese
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Updated Nov 26, 2025, Published Nov 22, 2019
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This Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese features four cheeses and irresistible cheese pulls. Inspired by Southern-style macaroni and cheese, it’s perfect for Thanksgiving and incredibly easy, just bake for 20 minutes until the top is crisp and golden. It’s one of my top 3 favorite sides, along with creamy mashed potatoes and these stuffing muffins.
Nothing says cozy season like a warm bowl of macaroni and cheese. Whether you go for this baked version or a stovetop style like pumpkin macaroni and cheese, cacio e pepe macaroni and cheese, or stovetop macaroni and cheese, they all pair perfectly with a comfy couch, a cozy blanket, and your favorite romcom. If you like my classic cozy mac and cheese recipe with a panko topping, I reposted it!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Cheeses – My favorite cheeses to use for this are gouda, mozzarella, colby jack, and sharp cheddar. You could also use gruyere, monterey jack, or white cheddar.
- Pasta – Small to medium-sized elbows work best for this recipe.
- Butter – The flour cooks in the butter to create a roux, the foundation of your creamy cheese sauce.
- Flour – This is the stabilizer for your cheese sauce to keep it velvety and prevent the sauce from breaking.
- Dijon Mustard – A very subtle flavor, but necessary, this adds an extra tang that takes the recipe up a notch.
- Chicken Bouillon – I like to use Better Than Bouillon; it adds a deep, savory flavor to the cheese sauce.
- Spices – Garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and lots of freshly cracked black pepper are what contribute to the delicious flavor of this recipe.
- Heavy Cream – The heavy cream ensures an extra creamy baked macaroni and cheese.
- Milk – I like using evaporated milk for this recipe.
For the rest of the ingredients, please refer to the recipe index card below!
How to Make Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese
- Boil the pasta. Drain and rinse with cold water.
- Make the cheese sauce by first melting the butter in a large Dutch oven. Whisk in the flour and spices, Dijon mustard, and chicken bouillon.
- Then, add the evaporated milk and heavy cream.
- Stir until it thickens and remove from heat.
- Add the cheese. Whisk until melted.
- Add the cooked pasta to the cheese sauce.
- Add half of the noodles to the prepared baking dish. And sprinkle on half of the remaining cheese.
- Add the rest of the noodles, along with the remaining cheese and bake for 30 minutes. Transfer to under the broiler for 2-3 minutes until all bubbly and golden brown.
Tips and Tricks
- Rinse your pasta. The extra starch will thicken your sauce further, but we don’t want that for this recipe.
- Remove the sauce from the heat before adding the cheese. You want the sauce to be hot but not boiling when you add the cheese to prevent the cheese from splitting.
- Layer the cheese in the macaroni. This makes sure there are cheesy pulls throughout the macaroni and cheese.
- Bake and then broil. After baking the macaroni and cheese, broil it for 2-3 minutes for that crispy, golden top that we love!
- Shred the cheese. Buy cheese in block form. And shred it yourself! A lot of pre-shredded cheeses contain starch that keeps the cheese from clumping. This also makes it tough to melt. We want melty cheese!
More Cozy Fall Recipes
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Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese Recipe
This creamy baked macaroni and cheese is the best of both worlds: creamy on the inside with a crispy crackily top. This recipe uses four cheeses, but use what you can and like!
Equipment
- 1 (5-quart) Dutch oven or pot
- 1 (6-quart) baking dish or casserole dish
Ingredients
Cheeses:
- 8 ounces gouda, shredded
- 8 ounces mozzarella, shredded
- 8 ounces colby jack, shredded
- 12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
Macaroni:
- 1 pound of pasta of choice, (I used medium size elbow macaroni)
Cheese Sauce:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground sweet paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon chicken bouillon, (I like Better Than Bouillon), skip if you want to make vegetarian
- 2 1/2 cups evaporated milk, from 2 cans of evaporated milk
- 2 cups heavy cream
Instructions
To Prep the Cheeses:
- Shred the cheeses with the large holes on a box grater. You could also do this with a food processor and the shredder attachment. Place in a very large bowl or baking sheet and mix together.
- Set aside 16 ounces of cheese (2 cups). This is going to be for the layering and the top. The rest of it is going to go in the sauce.
To Make the Macaroni:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add in a teaspoon of kosher salt. Pour in the macaroni and cook according to the package’s directions, usually about 5-6 minutes.
- Drain and rinse with cool water. This will stop the cooking process, as well as wash some of the starch off the pasta, which we want. This will help with keeping the macaroni and cheese saucy as it bakes.
To Make the Cheese Sauce:
- Preheat oven to 350℉. In a large Dutch oven, set over medium heat, melt the butter. When the butter is melted, pour in the flour and mix until a paste forms. Pour in the spices, salt and Dijon mustard, chicken bouillon. Whisk together to cook the spices. Pour in the evaporated milk and heavy cream.
- Mix regularly until the mixture thickens, about 2-3 minutes. It should coat the back of a spoon. Immediately turn the heat off and mix. It should be hot but not boiling. We want to add the cheese when the mixture is warm to the touch – but not boiling hot.
- Add half of the cheese for the cheese sauce and mix until it melts. Add in the remaining cheese and mix again until it’s melted. The sauce should be pretty smooth and stringy. Give it a taste and adjust the salt to your liking.
- Pour in the cooked pasta and mix until all the pasta is coated.
To Bake the Macaroni and Cheese:
- In a 9×13-inch baking dish or something comparable, add half of the macaroni and cheese. Sprinkle on half of the remaining cheese. Then, add the rest of the macaroni and cheese. Lastly, spread the rest of the shredded cheeses on top.
- Transfer to the oven to bake for 25-30 minutes. Place under a broiler for 2-3 minutes until the top has browned. Let it stand for about 5 minutes before serving.
To Re-heat:
- I like to add a few spoonfuls to the center of a sheet of foil and wrap it up. Place it in a preheated 300°F oven for about 10 minutes. This slowly reheats it, which makes for a super gooey, delicious macaroni and cheese. Alternatively, you can microwave it covered for about 1 minute.
Notes
Tips and Tricks:
- Rinse your pasta. The extra starch will thicken your sauce further, we don’t want that for this recipe.
- Remove the sauce from the heat before adding the cheese. You want the sauce to be hot but not boiling when you add the cheese to prevent the cheese from splitting.
- Layer the cheese in the macaroni. This makes sure there are cheesy pulls throughout the macaroni and cheese.
- Bake and then broil. After baking the macaroni and cheese, broil it for 2-3 minutes for that crispy, golden top that we love!
- Shred the cheese. Buy cheese in block form. And shred it yourself! A lot of pre-shredded cheeses contain starch that keeps the cheese from clumping. This also makes it tough to melt. We want melty cheese!
Nutrition
Calories: 463kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 23g | Cholesterol: 105mg | Sodium: 1471mg | Potassium: 90mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1100IU | Calcium: 439mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this Recipe? Please Rate & comment below!
This recipe has been since updated with new photos as of November 14th, 2025. The old recipe, which is a classic, is here: cozy baked mac n cheese).
Hi! I’ve been making this recipe frequently for about 2 years, my family and I love it! I noticed it changed. Is there anyway to get your original recipe?
Thank you!
Everyone always asks me for this recipe when I make it!
As someone who is the designated Mac and cheese contributor for the family, I experiment with different recipes often. Hands down this recipe is THE BEST. I am now known as the Mac n cheese queen and I highly suggest everyone to try this recipe paying special attention to the types of cheeses to use. That was a game changer for me.
If you’re thinking of using this recipe for Thanksgiving, do it! I have made this recipe for 3 Thanksgivings now (plus for family potlucks) and it’s always been a favorite with my family and friends! I usually change the cheeses slightly each time but typically always go for swiss and medium/sharp cheddar. Gouda has worked really well in it! I do find that sometimes the roux does take a bit more time to thicken than the 2-3 minutes listed so definitely make sure you follow the “thick enough to coat the back of the spoon” part.
Could you give a more common cheese variation please ?
Ps I love so many of your recipes they always come out delicious.
Such a yummy baked Mac and cheese! The perfect consistency. I will say if you are someone who had never heard of Raclette cheese like me, just a heads up it is very stinky! But once baked, the smell wears off. Overall, it was very easy and turned out delicious.
wonderful!! yay! this makes me so happy.
Has anyone doubled this? Will a 13×9 work?
you might need a bigger casserole dish than a 9×13 but you can try it and any leftover just use a separate baking dish!
Hi, this looks delicious. I having trouble with amounts of each cheese. I’m using sharp cheddar, mozzarella, and Colby Jack, how much of each should I use? TIA
you can just divide the cheese up. so you could use 8 ounces of cheddar, 4 ounces of colby jack and 2 ounces of mozzarella.
I found the 5 cups of milk to be really confusing, and maybe twice as much milk as is needed? Despite cooking that roux more than twice as long to try and cook it down I ended up with twice as much sauce as could cover the pasta. Half of that milk and a half a pound of good cheese was ultimately poured down the drain, and while the flavor profile from the spices was nice after baking it the finished product wasn’t ultimately all that cheesy—I’ve re-read the recipe a few times but can’t figure out where this could have gone wrong aside from requiring so much milk for a pound of pasta. Ultimately, it was tasty but not really at all cheesy (and I added an extra half pound of cheese to make sure there was a melty crispy top). Not ideal for spending $60 in groceries to make Mac and cheese. Yikes.
Hi Diana, Sorry this gave you trouble. Did you make the roux? This should’ve thickened the sauce quite a bit. It sounds like it perhaps didn’t cook long enough with the flour and butter mixture?
This is now my go-to macaroni recipe. Do you think you could bake it, and then transfer to a crockpot to keep it warm for a potluck?