Stovetop Mac and Cheese
This easy stovetop mac and cheese is rich, creamy, and comes together in under 20 minutes. A perfect kid-friendly dinner idea to have on hand during the holidays, especially if you use fun seasonal pasta shapes! Get my tips for cooking them perfectly so they don't fall apart.
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta elbows, small shells, ditalini, or any fun holiday-shaped noodle
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 ounces Velveeta cheese cut into small diced pieces
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese see notes
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook the pasta according to the lowest time listed on the package directions. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water just before draining. Set the pasta aside.
- While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the milk and season it with the seasoned salt, cayenne pepper, and black pepper. Continue to stir and cook until the milk is steaming hot.
- Add the cubed Velveeta and stir. Once it has melted into the milk, add the shredded cheddar and whisk it in until melted.
- Transfer the cheese sauce to the now-empty pasta pot. Add the pasta to the sauce and gently stir to coat. Some pasta shapes will absorb more liquid than others, so if the cheese sauce is a little too thick, you can use a splash of the reserved cooking water to thin it out as desired.
Recipe Notes
Easy Cheese Variations:
Want to play with the basic cheese sauce for fun, new flavors? You could substitute these for the shredded cheddar:- White Cheddar
- Monterey Jack
- Colby
- Parmesan
