Baked mac n' cheese with panko topping
A creamy mac n’ cheese bottom with a crispy panko breadcrumb top, this baked mac n’ cheese is the perfect side dish to any holiday meal.
Servings: 6 portions
Ingredients
- 300 g pasta
Cheese sauce:
- 40 gram butter
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 300 ml milk
- ¼ tsp salt
- A pinch of pepper
- 200 gram medium cheddar cheese
- 100 ml pasta water optional
Baked:
- 1 tbsp butter
- 100 gram cheddar cheese shredded
- 100 ml Panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package. Save some of the pasta water for the end, if you desire a more saucy sauce.
- Melt butter in a sauce pan. Add the flour and stir until grainy and cooked through. Peel and mince the garlic and add to the sauce pan, let cook for about a minute, make sure you don’t burn the garlic.
- Add the milk and whisk vigorously to avoid lumps.
- Add salt and pepper and let cook together. Be careful so it doesn’t boil over.
- Cook until sauce has thickened, about five minutes.
- Add the shredded cheese and keep stirring until the cheese is melted. If the sauce seems too thick, add some of the pasta water and stir again.
- Butter the sides and bottom of your oven-safe dish.
- Set your oven to 200 °C (390 °F).
- Add the cooked pasta into an oven-safe thin and pour the cheese sauce evenly over the pasta, use a spatula to even it out more.
- Sprinkle shredded cheese and panko over the pasta and cheese sauce.
- Add to middle of oven and bake for 15 minutes. If you have a grill setting on your oven, use this for the last 3-4 minutes to further brown the top of your mac n’ cheese bake.