Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese – A quick and easy 30 minute meal filled with flavor! Creamy smoked gouda mac and cheese topped with bacon and breadcrumbs!
Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese
Mac and cheese is really the ultimate comfort food. After trying this amazing smoked gouda pasta this past summer, I had been dying to combine that flavor into a mac and cheese recipe and it turned out so delicious. It’s creamy, flavorful, and so great topped with bacon!
Common questions about making mac and cheese
How do you make homemade mac and cheese?
All you have to do is boil pasta, melt the ingredients for the sauce together, combine the pasta and sauce together, and serve. Super easy!
What can you add to mac and cheese to make it better?
- Bacon crumbles
- Parmesan (only add when you are serving, do not add it in when you are cooking)
- Black pepper
- Breadcrumbs
- Chicken
- Sausage
- Steamed veggies
How do you make baked mac and cheese?
For a classic baked mac and cheese, you are going to want a recipe with a bechamel sauce base such as my baked brie mac and cheese. It will firm up nicely in the oven since it is a thinner sauce than this mac and cheese.
Other tips and tricks on this smoked gouda mac and cheese recipe
- Feel free to use your favorite pasta shape! I went with a swirly shape because it looked fun but other shapes such as the classic macaroni, elbow, shell, penne, etc all work! The best ones are those that have a hole in the middle that can fill up with cheese inside!
- Make sure you do not get pre-shredded cheese. It doesn’t melt as nicely since it has additives to avoid clumping. As convenient as it is to buy you cheese pre-shredded, spending the time to shred it yourself is worthwhile!
Can’t get enough of this mac and cheese recipe? Try these other recipes!
- White Cheddar Mac and Cheese
- Brie Mac and Cheese
- Tuscan Chicken Pasta
- Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta
- Copycat Panera Mac and Cheese
Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese
Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese - A quick and easy 30 minute meal filled with flavor! Creamy smoked gouda mac and cheese topped with bacon and breadcrumbs!
Ingredients
Gouda Mac and Cheese
- 1 box pasta (elbow macaroni, penne, shells, etc)
- 1/4 cup butter (unsalted)
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups milk
- 8 ounces smoked gouda cheese (shredded)
- 8 ounces white cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
Toppings
- 1/2 cup bacon (chopped and cooked)
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Cook pasta in a large pot of salted water according to the directions on the packaging of the pasta. Drain.
- While the pasta is cooking, melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Ad in flour and stir until well combined. Slowly add in the milk and continue to mix until it starts to thicken.
- Reduce heat to low and add in the smoked gouda cheese, white cheddar cheese, salt, pepper, and paprika. Stir until the cheese has completely melted and the sauce is smooth.
- In a small pan, cook the panko breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, butter, and garlic powder until the butter has melted and the breadcrumbs have lightly browned.
- Add pasta to the sauce and stir until well combined. Serve topped with the breadcrumbs and bacon.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 624Total Fat: 43gSaturated Fat: 24gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 137mgSodium: 1308mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 33g
This nutritional information can vary depending on the specific products you choose so this is a general guess of the correct nutritional information based on the products I used. Please keep that in mind when making the recipe.
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