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Pasta in sauce with milk and butter with cheese

Macaroni in a Creamy Cheese Sauce

The most tender pasta in a creamy sauce just melts in your mouth! It's an American favorite. It's easy to make from the simplest ingredients, yet it comes out delicious. The key is quality ingredients — go for Italian durum-wheat pasta.

Nika

Recipe author

Pasta in sauce with milk and butter with cheese

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Pasta

200

Water

Butter

Flour

Milk

300

Hard cheese

Green onion

Nutmeg

Pepper

Salt

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 18 % 2 g

Fats 18 % 2 g

Carbohydrates 64 % 7 g

53 kcal

GI: 14 / 71 / 14

Cooking method

Cooking time: 40 min

Step 1:

Gather your ingredients. Use any pasta you like for this dish — shells, farfalle, fusilli, penne, or other shapes — and durum-wheat pasta is best. Use a hard cheese like Russian, Poshekhonsky, or similar, and whole or 2% milk works well. You can swap the green onion for any other herb.
Step 2:

Pour the water into a pot and set it over the heat. Pasta needs plenty of water, so use a big enough pot. When it boils, salt it and add the pasta. Cook it uncovered until al dente.
Step 3:

Grate the cheese fine and cover it with plastic wrap so it doesn't dry out while you make the sauce.
Step 4:

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat without letting it boil. Whisk in the sifted flour, stirring constantly. Cook the flour out, keeping it free of lumps.
Step 5:

Slowly pour in the milk and immediately add the seasonings: ground nutmeg, freshly ground black pepper, and salt. Cook the mixture briefly — it should start to thicken, but not too much. It'll thicken further as it cools.
Step 6:

As the sauce thickens, stir in the grated cheese right away. It should melt into the hot sauce and give it a nice, mellow cheesy flavor.
Step 7:

Drain the cooked pasta in a colander and let the excess water run off.
Step 8:

Return the pasta to the pot, pour in the cheese sauce, and toss.
Step 9:

Plate the creamy mac and cheese and sprinkle it with chopped green onion.

For more flavor and variety, you can add bacon, shrimp, sautéed mushrooms, or pieces of chicken or salmon to this pasta.
For a change, you can also bake the creamy pasta. Just transfer it from the pot to a baking dish, top with more grated cheese, and bake in a preheated oven for 10–15 minutes at 400°F (200°C).
How to cook pasta properly: use a roomy pot with about 1 liter of water per 100 grams of pasta — the pasta should float freely. Salt it to taste and bring to a boil. It's important to add the pasta only to boiling water, or it may stick together. Cook over medium heat, stirring now and then, until done or al dente (check the package for the time). Drain in a colander and let the water run off; there's no need to rinse it. If you're not going to toss it with sauce right away, return it to the pot and stir in a teaspoon of olive oil (or a pat of butter) to keep it from sticking.