Slowly whisk in milk, stirring continuously until thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes until color of roux gets slightly darker. Once melted whisk in flour, salt and pepper. To prepare roux, melt butter into a medium saucepan over medium heat.I recommend cooking the pasta a minute less than the directions. Cook pasta according to package directions.shredded cheddar cheese of your choice.2% milk– You want to use a higher fat milk when making mac and cheese.all-purpose flour– The flour in the recipe is used to prepare the roux.black pepper– Use fresh cracked black pepper for best results.kosher salt– Kosher salt is a course salt that works great for cooking.In general, I use salted butter for most of my cooking and baking. salted butter– Salted butter gives a little extra flavor.small dry pasta– Elbow pasta is most common for classic mac and cheese, but you can use any small pasta of your choice.See my Bacon Mac and Cheese Recipe too! Be sure to follow Picky Palate on Instagram for daily recipe inspiration! If that sounds good to you, then you will LOVE this recipe too 🙂

I like a thick and creamy perfectly flavorful cheese sauce like my picture above shows. I think it’s a bit different for everyone, but let me tell you about my perfect mac and cheese. There’s nothing like homemade mac and cheese, am I right? What makes the perfect mac and cheese in your opinion? Good ol’ Kraft right out of the box? Homemade thick and cheesy on the stovetop? Baked with a crispy topping and lots of ingredients inside? How To Make Homemade Roux for a Creamy Sauce.

It freezes great, and makes quick work when you want a great mac & cheese for dinner. I buy a large block of good quality cheddar, and we cut it into quarters, my husband grates it and puts it into 4 small zip lock bags. After cooking the macaroni or shells for about 6 minutes and then drain it, I then use the same pan to make my white sauce – only one pan to wash out. I do this recipe from memory, I keep a supply of shredded sharp cheddar in the freezer, and you can put this together in about 15 minutes, start to finish. It does look creamer, although I did like the fact that the fat free milk is probably more healthy. Today I just put it together and I decided to use some half and half that I had in the frig, – about 3/4 cup – and the rest is the fat free. Since we only drink fat free milk in our house I have been using that to make my white sauce. It is true – the original recipe called for 2-1/2 cups of milk, 2 tablespoons of flour, and 2 tablespoons of butter.

To the commenter above about the difference in the original recipe that was on the back of the box, and the newer version above. I have been making homemade mac & cheese for almost 50 years.

Roux for baked mac and cheese