Southern Baked Macaroni and Cheese Recipe
Southern Baked Macaroni and Cheese
(Soul Food Style)
Watch me make this southern baked macaroni and cheese from start to finish!
I’m pretty sure you all know how hard it is to find a good, southern, soul food style baked macaroni and cheese recipe, right?
People tend to keep a tight grasp on their prized macaroni & cheese recipes, but not in my family. We share our favorite recipes like they are going on out of style! “Aint no sense in taking recipes to the grave” is how my grandmother sees it.
Well, imagine my shock when my sister sashayed in on Thanksgiving and casually placed this baked macaroni & cheese on the table. I could have sworn I had all of my family members baked mac n cheese recipes.
What was this impostor all about! The proof was in the taste. I had one (ok three) plates of this macaroni and cheese and was on her heels like ash in the wintertime trying to get this recipe.
My husband took a bite and said, “um, you need to take your mac n cheese recipe off your blog and put this one up. This one is way better than yours!”
THANKS A LOT, MATT…You’ll pay for that comment dearly! lol
Yall this baked macaroni and cheese is FULL OF SOUL!! That is the first thing that came to mind when I took that first bite. Usually, I’m not that into mac and cheese recipes that involve Velveeta, but this one….yeah, this one gets a pass!
I just love how that top layer of smoked cheese forms like a crust. It’s super creamy, flavorful, and easy. The MVP is definitely that SMOKED CHEDDAR! Good God, I couldn’t stop eating this stuff.
So big sis…I will bow down gracefully to you and say that you make THE BEST Baked MAC N CHEESE EVER!
I have printed out this recipe, took a photo of it, laminated it, and put it in my recipe album. Not many recipes get to make it to the album. She’s a keeper!
I’m sure that if you give it a try, it will end up going into your recipe collection, as well.
Get the Recipe: Southern Baked Macaroni and Cheese Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup Colby & Monterey Jack, shredded (cheese blend)
- 6-8 oz Velveeta cheese, shredded (feel free to cut back on the Velveeta if you don't want it to be super creamy)
- 1 cup sharp cheddar, shredded (can use less if you don't like a sharp taste in your mac n cheese)
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup smoked cheddar cheese, shredded (a must)
- paprika, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Cook macaroni until just al dente or a little under al dente. (Look on the back of the box to see how long you need to cook your pasta for it to reach al dente.) Be careful not to overcook.
- Drain pasta and set aside.
- In a large bowl, add milk, heavy cream & cheeses (except for the smoked cheddar).
- Stir to combine.
- Taste the milk mixture and add salt & pepper until it has a good taste. (You can also add in other seasonings like onion powder, paprika, etc. Tasting will help avoid having a plain, bland baked macaroni & cheese.)
- When you are content with the taste, add the eggs.
- Stir well until combined.
- Butter a 9 x 9-inch baking dish.
- Add macaroni to the baking dish.
- Pour cheese mixture over macaroni.
- Make sure the cheese is distributed well.
- Top with the smoked cheddar cheese. (I add a little more Colby jack as well.) Sprinkle with paprika and/or black pepper, if desired.
- Bake for 35-45 minutes. Do not overbake. It may be a bit jiggly when you take it out of the oven. It will firm up as it cool.
- Let cool for about 10-15 minutes or until fully set.
- Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Smoked cheddar cheese can be found in grocery stores in the specialty cheese section, not with the shredded, common cheeses. I get mine from Walmart.
Do not over bake! Mac and cheese may be a tad jiggly when removed from oven but it will firm up as it cools.
Feel free to use other cheeses, but that smoked cheddar is a MUST!
*UPDATE* Sorry sis but I think I’ve discovered a new best-baked macaroni and cheese recipe lol I’ll be posting it soon guys, but this one is still a favorite!!
Wait I’ve got more macaroni and cheese recipes!! Check these out!
Creamy baked macaroni and cheese!
(this one is great for kids and adults It has no Velveeta)
Classic Homemade Baked Macaroni & Cheese
The first mac and cheese posted on my site.
Made it tonight and it was absolutely delicious. I did season the cheese mixture with garlic, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Top came out nice and crispy but perfect.
Love this Southern Baked Macaroni And Cheese Recipe, seems delicious , will love to make this one. Actually my son love macaroni , he will be very happy to have this one.
I will never make Mac and cheese any other way. We didn’t have all the ingredients last time. My daughter made a mistake and bought smoked gouda instead of smoked cheddar so we used the Gouda. And she only bought Colby instead of Colby/Jack. So we just used Colby. It was STILL good. Then I made it again with Colby jack and the smoked gouda since we had some left. Still banging! My husband is a great cook and set proclaimed food critic. Whenever anyone in the house cooks we always wait for him to taste it. If he likes it then it’s a win! Well this was a win! Thanks for this one!
*self proclaimed*
Yayy!! So glad you guys like it!
Hey! I adore this recipe and I was thinking of trying to sub the milk for buttermilk. Do you think that’s a good idea?
I use buttermilk instead of milk and it is FIRE!
I’ve made it 3 times as a side dish for my fried chicken and haven’t used the smoked cheddar yet. It was still super good every time. Tonight I got the smoked cheddar to add to it. Going see if my family notices lol.
First time using recipe online-just made this for tomorrow’s festivities I like it. I will be back to share the family’s feedback. I used smoked Gouda as I see others have; not sure how you can go wrong with Gouda.
Tackling the collards recipe next, so glad I came across this site.
I have made it exactly like the recipe calls for and it’s delish but I tweak now. I melt the cheese into the cream & milk then stir it into the cooked macaroni, just my preference. I always use Velveeta and a smoked cheese but will use leftover cheese from my refrigerator in place of the other cheeses–pepper jack, mozarella, American, havarti, etc. All variations have been good and fam loves it. Today, I am using smoked gouda and smoked cheddar for the top, 6oz Velveeta, colby jack, 3 slices leftover cheddar, 1 slice leftover American, and 1 leftover mozarella stick for the sauce. Today I added sliced jalapeno, and ground mustard, paprika, S&P to taste.
Delish! I used a combination of various cheeses I had in my refrigerator. But I purchased the smoked cheddar, as indicated it’s important. I followed your recipe pretty much but added ham to the cheese mixture. Thank you so much for your Southern cooking tips. I’ve used several of your recipes but this is the first time I posted. ❤️
I made this for the fist time 2 years ago for my Son’s wedding buffet. I added cooked bacon, chopped fresh tomatoes and cumin. It was such a hit! I had to hide a serving for myself to eat the next day. I also melted the cheeses and cream to make a sauce which I found was easier then to mix throughly with the noodles. This is my favorite Mac and cheese recipe EVER!
Amazing mac’n cheese. I have been looking for an authentic southern mac and cheese recipe and this is it. Thank you for sharing your recipes.