J-man was somewhere around 18 months when I cooked this for the first time. The recipe belongs to a woman who entered a contest at ABC for the best Mac ‘n Cheese. She submitted the winning recipe, and then I tweaked it because I can’t leave well enough alone.

Now I’ve never really been a Mac & Cheese fan; in Holland we grow up on a different kind of macaroni. As much as I love cheese sauce, I just need some veggies and meat (optionally) to go with it, like my Pasta Gratin but I knew I had to try this version.

I vividly remember J-man’s reaction to it. After his first bite he leaned into the table, his chubby little hands reaching for the plate, trying to get his face as close to it as he possibly could, forcing me to shove it into that tiny mouth at warp-speed. It was pretty hilarious.

But in all fairness, with 3 different cheeses, a bulb of roasted garlic, and lots of bacon? Yup, this really is the best mac ‘n cheese, ever.

Ingredients:

Mac & Cheese 

1 pound macaroni grande (or a pasta of choice)
1 bulb roasted garlic
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 to 1 1/2 tsp salt
6 oz grated Gruyère
8 oz grated Cheddar
1/2 cup minced shallot
3 + 2/3 cups of milk
6 tbsp butter

 
Topping:

1 cup panko bread crumbs
5 oz smoked bacon
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 tsp dried parsley
2 tbsp melted butter

Directions:

 
Photographic intense posting ahead. Brace yourself!
 

In case you’re not sure how to roast garlic, here’s a how to roast and freeze garlic. (Warning: very bad photography!)

 
We’ll be using the whole bulb. That might seem like a lot, but really, it isn’t. When you roast garlic it becomes sweet, mellow and buttery.
 

Use a fork to turn the garlic into a smooth paste.

Peel and mince as much shallots until you end up with 1/2 a cup.

Cook the bacon.

Look at it sizzling away, gotta love those salty protein bubbles. Have to fight the urge to dip my finger in it.

 
Keep going until all the bacon is cooked through and through. Drain it on a paper towel.
 

Eventually you’ll be left with a plate full of crispy bacon and a skillet full of bacon fat. Terrible, isn’t it?

 
Yeah, right.
 

Let’s save a tbsp or so. Just for the heck of it.

Figured this was the perfect opportunity to put the grater I got from Fonq to the test. Grate 1 cup of Parmesan.

Mix the parmesan with the panko, dried parsley, and crumble the bacon in there. There’s our topping!

 
Grate on!
 

Coarsely grate the Gruyère and cheddar. This really is the magical cheese sauce combo.

I opted for macaroni grande. Organic, but that was mainly because it was the only grande they sold.

Bring a huge pot of salted water to a boil and add the macaroni. We had an impostor! That was no grande. I threw it in anyway, for good luck.

 
Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package.
 

Heat the bacon fat in a large sauce pan.

Sauté the shallots in the bacon fat for a minute or 2.

Melt the 6 tbsp butter in there as well.

Stir in the mustard powder and flour and cook over low to medium heat for 2 minutes (stir now and then) to neutralise the rawness of the flour.

Pour in splashes of milk and whisk like a madman. Lumps = pretty darn bad, so whisk!

Eventually you’ll end up with a pan full of creamy sauce.

Season the sauce with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in the roasted garlic paste.

Bring in the cheese!

Turn off the heat and stir the cheese into the sauce—it will melt immediately. Taste to check the seasoning.

 
Pasta should be done by now. Drain it well.
 

Add the sauce to the pasta and stir it in.

Oh yeah, baby.

Transfer it to a 9 x 13″ baking dish.

Not scraping every bit of this delicious sauce out of the pan is a venial sin.

 
I think I just rescued you from purgatory!
 

Sprinkle the bacon and Parmesan topping all over the pasta.

And finally, drizzle 2 tbsp melted butter all over the topping.

Tightly wrap the baking dish with aluminium foil.

 
Place the baking dish into a preheated oven and bake it for 15 minutes at 200C° (400F°). Remove the aluminium foil, put it back into the oven and bake it uncovered until the sauce is all bubbly hot and the topping is golden brown and crunchy. For me that was another 15 minutes.
 

You’ll want to make this one over and over, mark my words.

Recipe adapted from Laura Macek.

Serving tip:

Country-Style Green Beans

Creamed Corn & Peas

Green Beans. The Ultimate Mix.