Description
This 4-Cheese Mac & Cheese Bake is the ultimate in comfort and perfect for your summertime picnics and potlucks!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1.5 pounds cooked al dente pasta (ditallini, shells, farfalle..) I used medium shells
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 4 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 42 oz. canned diced tomatoes (3/4 cup juice reserved)
- 1 Tbsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. ground white pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- 2 cups grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1/2 cup shredded Fontina
- 1/2 cup mascarpone (or cream cheese, or chevre)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
- 3/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water for 6 minutes. When done, drain and set aside.
- In the same large pot, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Once butter is melted, add the flour and stir for 2 – 3 minutes to create a roux.
- Turn the heat up to high, and very slowly, while whisking, add heavy cream and reserved tomato juice.
- Bring to a simmer and add chopped tomatoes and seasonings.
- Sauce should thicken. (3 – 5 minutes.)
- Remove from heat and stir in cheeses, reserving 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese.
- Stir in cooked pasta and chopped parsley.
- Transfer mixture to a lightly greased 9 x 13 baking dish.
- Sprinkle reserved Parmesan and Panko breadcrumbs over the mixture.
- Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until golden and bubbling.