Baking Sheet Macaroni and Cheese
Fight for the corner -- it's worth it.
So many good things: spiraled pasta, whole milk, butter, cheddar (two types) and cayenne.
Smearing the sheet pan with butter: as fun as it looks.
Grating the cheese on a box-grater.
We love the feel of grated cheese.
In goes the pasta to boil for six minutes before it's mixed with the cheese and baked off.
Ready for action.
All components tossed together, Amanda spreads the cheesy pasta in a layer the depth of the baking sheet.
But hold the milk -- it gets poured over at the the end.
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Author Notes: I've always thought macaroni and cheese's 20% crunch to 80% soft ratio was all wrong. The ratio should be more like 50:50. The soft part, delicious though it may be, wears you out. You need lots of crisp bits to stay interested in the dish. In an effort to realign macaroni and cheese, I brought together three concepts: a baked pasta technique from Cucina Simpatica, a potato gratin method from Jeffrey Steingarten, Vogue's food columnist, and a similar method used by Melissa Clark for kugel. In Cucina Simpatica, pasta is par-cooked, then combined with cream, cheese and other seasonings and baked at 500 degrees. The high temperature finishes the pasta quickly and toasts the tips on the top layer -- a memorable detail. Steingarten's gratin involves roasting thinly sliced potatoes and cream on a baking sheet so that the entire gratin is crisp and handsomely browned. And Melissa Clark spreads her kugel in a baking sheet achieving a predominantly crunchy texture. Back in the macaroni and cheese lab, I combined these three ideas by par-cooking the pasta, folding it together with a few cheeses, spreading it on a baking sheet, and finishing it in a 475-degree oven. The result was total success -- the muffin top of mac 'n cheese! Major world issue solved, at last. Here I've used Julia Moskin's recipe for Crusty Macaroni and Cheese and applied my cooking method to it. - amanda
Serves 6
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 12 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
- 12 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
- 1 pound pasta spirals (or other small shape)
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
- Salt
- 2/3 cups whole milk
- Heat oven to 475 degrees. Use one tablespoon butter to thickly grease a 11-by-17-inch rimmed baking sheet. Combine the grated cheeses and set aside 2 heaping cups for topping.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for 6 minutes. Drain.
- In a large bowl, toss together the pasta, cheeses, cayenne and salt to taste. Spread the mixture in the baking sheet and evenly pour the milk over the surface. Sprinkle the reserved cheese on top, dot with the remaining butter and bake, uncovered, until golden and crisp, about 15 minutes.
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
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2 months ago Kelly holmes
Totally satisfied my hankerin' for my favorite comfort food, Mac N Cheese!
I used a stainless steel hotel pan, all the browned cheese just slid off when I scooped it up.
I followed the recipe with a couple of additions, 12 oz sharp cheddar, 16 oz very sharp cheddar, one can of plain artichoke hearts quartered, one container of silken tofu crumbled by hand and tossed with everything else by hand in the pan. Drizzled 2/3 cup of half and half over pan, topped with two cups of extra sharp cheese, sprinkled Spanish Paprika on top, baked 15 minutes on 475*. Best thing I've eaten in a LONG time!
Thanks Amanda!
2 months ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thanks for detailing your tweaks!
4 months ago carbonarasuz
Susan is a recipe tester for Food52.
Amanda this is genius! It makes for a quick and easy mac and cheese. A must-cook for anyone who likes the crunchy part of a mac and cheese!
4 months ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Hey -- glad you liked it!
5 months ago belindajk
This looks great but my suggestion to those of you who are looking for crunch is to eat a side salad with the mac n' cheese, some broccoli slaw, say, or some lightly steamed (stiil-somewhat crunchy) veggies to round things out texture-wise as well as nutritionally. Veggies add a whole dimension to this otherwise mostly soft and creamy comfort food.
4 months ago GordonW
I love a good crunchy salad with mac n' cheese...preferably something on the vinegary side where the dressing starts mixing with the pasta.
6 months ago mamacita'skitchen
i did dust the top with homemade, crushed garlicy bread crumbs, and didn't use parchment paper and it was still wonderfu. It sure extends a lb of pasta for my family.
who all loved its crispy, crunchy top and bottom. Great idea and no need for bechamel. A novel, and superior mac-n-cheese!
over 1 year ago greenoma
Good recipe for a quick Mac and cheese. Agreed that the Parmesan helps to ad se more saltiness to this dish. Didn't do the parchment paper but learned a voluble lesson. Will definitely make again.
over 1 year ago misschompers
Pure genius!
over 1 year ago dinam
Sorry iPad spell correct got me. I added Parmesan and panko to the top.
over 1 year ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Third time's the charm! :) Love your persistence -- and really glad you liked the recipe.
over 1 year ago dinam
Sorry iPad spell correct got me. I added aprmesand and panko to the top.
over 1 year ago dinam
Made this tonight, yum! Added some parmesan and Pablo to the top as wellnforbadded crunch. And parchment paper to the bottom of the pan. Still has a nice crunch. Great recipe, this is a keeper. Thanks.
over 1 year ago wizarddrummer
Hi Amanda,
Nice recipe caught this as part of Yahoo's page with Martha Stewart's Mac & Cheese along with some high praise for you!
"... You've got to have a béchamel -- which is really just milk, thickened with flour.
Skip it and the cheese inevitably toughens and the grease breaks free. (A notable exception: Amanda Hesser's truly genius baking sheet mac and cheese, which cooks quickly enough not to destroy the impromptu cheese sauce.)"
Currently live in Mexico so Sharp Cheddar is hard to come by so I can't try it straght away.
The first question that comes to my mind is why can't you use a silicone baking mat to get rid of the burnt bottom? Or is the burnt bottom something you want.
Perhaps you could give it a try and let us know. I'll try to find some cheeses in the next month or so when I can travel to a larger market.
I like the idea of not using flour.
over 1 year ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thanks for your comment! You could definitely use a silicone baking mat. Not sure if it will prevent the burning but will make the clean up easier. You want some browning but not too much burning.
almost 2 years ago thegirlkyle
Hi Amanda! I caught your recipe a couple weeks ago on the homepage of this site and you totally get the importance of mac-n-cheese. The balance of cheese, crunch and flavor! I combined your two recipes together and I'm looking forward to adapting a little further... Amazing recipe! YUM :)
Kyle
http://thegirlkyle.com...
almost 2 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thanks Kyle -- and like your blog!
almost 2 years ago Droplet
Amanda, if you want them to be even more crispy, you could add some tiny pasta, such as crumbled vermicelly, on the top layer. I would just soak them in milk for a while prior to cooking so they remain spiky for sprinkling.
almost 2 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Cool idea -- thanks.
about 2 years ago seabirdskitchen
I normally make a bechamel for my mac and cheese. Any thoughts on how that might work here?
about 2 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
I'd try it -- just spread your normal mac and cheese mixture on a baking sheet. Let me know how it turns out.
about 2 years ago Anitalectric
Anita is a vegan pastry chef & founder of Electric Blue Baking Co. in Brooklyn.
what a great idea for a recipe. This just gave me an idea for mashed potatoes with a crispy top. My favorite part of mashed potatoes is when you spread it in a casserole dish and put it in the oven so the top gets browned and crispy!
about 2 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
I love that part of mashed potatoes, too. Good idea.
about 2 years ago boulangere
Cynthia is a trusted source on Bread/Baking.
Lilygibbs, thank you so much for asking your question, or I'd perhaps never stumbled across this wonderful-looking recipe!
about 3 years ago bonnie59
Hi Amanda,
I made this for supper tonight but I think I goofed with the amount of pasta called for in the recipe:)! The conversion from grams to pounds might have been the problem....I only used 2 cups of dried macaroni cooked for 6 minutes and it was definitely not enough to fill the baking sheet correctly. Next time I'll have to add more but it was well received by my family eventhough the baking sheet will have to be scrubbed really well to get all the cheese off the bottom....again not enough pasta I think to soak up the cheese. I thoroughly enjoy your website and hope it continues long after the 52 weeks are up!
almost 3 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Just saw this -- thanks so much!
over 3 years ago cherrypatter
yum. that looks perfect. definitely need to try that out this week! perfect weeknight meal and mixes things up for my child who will only eat things that are white and cheesy.
over 3 years ago shayma
Amanda- i really like this idea. i sort of feel the same way about gnocchi, which is why i cant eat it, there is no 'crunch', just pillowy-softness. i do love the addition of cayenne in your recipe.
over 3 years ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thank you -- I think cayenne is a great and sort of forgotten ingredient.