This recipe is so easy to make, doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and my family loves this homemade version of a classic processed food meal. Winner!

Want to Save This Recipe?

Enter your email & I’ll send it straight to your inbox. And you’ll get new recipes & tips each week.

Save Recipe

One of the reasons that I love our real food lifestyle is because the comforting meals I grew up enjoying, like macaroni and cheese, are completely acceptable. While diets are intended to restrict food options, which oftentimes leaves you craving the “forbidden fruit” (or bacon), real food is about embracing meals that are made with “better” ingredients. Real food isn’t about being “better.” I almost think that word gives “outsiders” the idea that we’re looking for an elite food system. Rather, real food is about getting back to the food great-great grandma knew and enjoyed. Essentially, real food is about getting back to the basics, while keeping the modern conveniences like the washing machine and dishwasher ;).

Here’s how food advocate Micheal Pollan sums up real food, “Real food doesn’t have a long ingredient list, isn’t advertised on TV, and it doesn’t contain stuff like maltodextrin or sodium tripolyphosphate. Real food is things that your great-grandmother (or someone’s great-grandmother) would recognize.”

Isn’t that a freeing thought?

This recipe is so easy to make, doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and my family loves this homemade version of a classic processed food meal. Winner!

Since nothing is essentially “off limits” when it comes to real food (except ingredients great-great grandma wouldn’t recognize), my best advice for a family transitioning from processed food to real food (like we did nearly eight years ago) is to start making processed food alternatives at home. This simply means recreating the very meals your family loves with “better” ingredients (AKA: ingredients great-great grandma would recognize).

That’s it!

Simple, right?!

This recipe is so easy to make, doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and my family loves this homemade version of a classic processed food meal. Winner!

Does your weekly meal plan include visiting a hamburger joint or fast food drive-thru? Yes? Awesome, let’s make the real food transition!

The easiest way to transition your family away from the drive-thru is to start recreating real food burgers, french fries, and even chicken nuggets (I’m currently working on an easy recipe to share on Live Simply) at home in your kitchen. Yes, this may require a bit of extra time for preparing a meal, but the time spent learning to make these foods at home will be worth the investment.

This recipe is so easy to make, doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and my family loves this homemade version of a classic processed food meal. Winner!

Why do I recommend going the homemade alternative route in the beginning? Because that, my friend, is the easiest way to win a Standard American Diet family over to the real food side. Once a family understands and tastes a juicy homemade burger and fries, homemade nuggets, or homemade macaroni and cheese, it’s much easier to rally the troops. And trust me, rallying the troops is essential for making real food a long-term lifestyle. No divided households here.

This recipe is so easy to make, doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and my family loves this homemade version of a classic processed food meal. Winner!

Today’s recipe is one that I hope you’ll be able to use in your rallying-the-troops mission. Or, if your troops are already on board with real food, I hope this recipe will be an easy comfort meal to add to your regular meal plan, along with a vegetable or easy weeknight salad.

This macaroni and cheese doesn’t require any special ingredients, unlike my Roasted Butternut Mac and Cheese or Mac and Cheese with Swiss Chard and Mushrooms, because it’s intended to be a very simple, quick-fix meal, although you could toss some broccoli or peas in with the pasta while it cooks. You know, the kind of quick-fix meal that a certain company that starts with the letter K likes to sell us based on the convenience factor. No more, my friend, no more.

This recipe is so easy to make, doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and my family loves this homemade version of a classic processed food meal. Winner!
Homemade Stove-Top Macaroni and Cheese
5 from 7 votes

Homemade Stove-Top Macaroni and Cheese

This macaroni and cheese doesn’t require any special ingredients, because it’s intended to be a very simple, quick-fix meal, although you could toss some broccoli or peas in with the pasta while it cooks. You know, the kind of quick-fix meal that a certain company that starts with the letter K likes to sell us based on the convenience factor. No more, my friend, no more.
Kristin Marr
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings
Calories 291 kcal

Ingredients

  • 1-12 oz elbow macaroni noodles * I like Eden brand.
  • 4 TB butter I use Kerrygold salted butter.
  • 4 TB all-purpose einkorn flour Whole wheat rice, spelt, and whole white wheat flours will also work.
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese or any variety of cheese you prefer: Monterey Jack, Gouda, Sharp Cheddar, etc.
  • 1/2 tsp salt or more depending on taste
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • fresh herbs as a garnish, like parsley, optional

Instructions

  • In a large pot (I use a 3-quart Dutch Oven), cook the noodles according to the package. Once cooked, drain the water from the noodles, and rinse the noodles under cold water to keep them from clumping together.
  • Return the empty pot to the stove-top. Over medium heat, melt the butter. Once melted, add the flour one tablespoon at a time to the butter, whisking the flour into the butter each time a new tablespoon of flour is added. Once combined, the butter and flour should appear creamy and bubbly. Whisk the milk into the butter/flour. Let the mixture rest, over the medium heat for about 5-7 minutes, whisking every few minutes, until the mixture is thick. Whisk in the cheese, salt, and pepper. The cheese sauce should be thick and creamy.
  • Add the cooked noodles to the cheese sauce. Gently stir the macaroni and cheese until the cheese and noodles are well combined.
  • Serve immediately, or freeze for later.

Nutrition

Calories: 291kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 12gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 66mgSodium: 524mgPotassium: 117mgSugar: 3gVitamin A: 715IUCalcium: 343mgIron: 0.5mg
Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!

*Noodles: The package size you choose for this recipe will depend on how creamy you’d like your macaroni and cheese. I like to use a 12-ounce bag of noodles, but an 8-ounce or 16-ounce bag will also work. You can also cook a 16-ounce bag of noodles (a standard size), and then add as many noodles as desired to the cheese sauce.

The flavor of your macaroni and cheese will greatly depend on the cheese you choose to use in this recipe. I love a blend of cheddar cheese and gouda. Mixing cheese varieties will also change the flavor of the final dish, so experiment based on your family’s preferences.

Freezer Suggestion: This recipe freezes very well. Make the recipe according to the instructions above, then place the macaroni and cheese in freezer-safe containers, and freeze for a later date. Defrost the macaroni and cheese overnight in the fridge before reheating.

Take the Guess Work OUt of meal planning

Free 64 Rotational Meals Ideas Cheat Sheet

Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack recipes to rotate week after week. Put healthy meals on auto-pilot.

This recipe is so easy to make, doesn't require any fancy ingredients, and my family loves this homemade version of a classic processed food meal. Winner!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

19 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I was able to quickly whip this recipe up last night for my family, even after getting home later than planned on a weeknight. We devoured it and it was spectacular!!! I will definitely be making this recipe again in the near future as a quick fill-in during the week as well as a great lunch box staple for my young son! THANK YOU, Kristin!!!! I recently came across your blog and absolutely LOVE IT!!!!! Keep it up!!!!!!!!!

  2. 5 stars
    I recently started listening to your podcast and binged till I was all caught up! I am working on transitioning our family to cleaner eating and you make it easy! We tried this recipe tonight and it was so easy and delicious, definitely our new go to homemade recipe. Thank you!

  3. With all the terrifying info on powdered cheese surfacing we want to make this and freeze it. How do you prevent the cheese from separating and getting gross when you heat it back up?

    1. Hey Kelyn, I haven’t had any significant issues with the cheese separating or getting gross, yet. There are two options: 1. Freeze an entire batch in a baking pan (preferably a disposable one) and then cook the mac and cheese in the oven to warm/defrost it. 2. I freeze the mac and cheese in quart-size baggies, and then place the baggies in a sink of warm (not hot) water to defrost the mac and cheese. Then, the mac and cheese can be reheated over the stove-top or in the microwave.

      This tutorial works well (I just don’t use the plastic wrap)–the milk and medium/slow heat is key!

      The kind of cheese used may also play into how it reheats–the texture.

  4. 5 stars
    This is quick and easy to make, so it’s perfect for those busy days. Everybody loved it. My 17 year old son loves macaroni and cheese and he prefers homemade over store bought. It took only one bite for him to say this recipe was a keeper. Thanks for all the great recipes.

  5. 5 stars
    Thank you for this recipe. We have been making mac and cheese like this for years. Would never use boxed mac and cheese. Love all you recipes. Thanks again!

  6. 5 stars
    I am looking forward to trying this. We are retired, but we both love mac & cheese. I typically make it from scratch, so boxed stuff just doesn’t cut it! I have been looking for something easy like this to use when we take off in our motor home for 3 months this summer. I don’t think it would take much longer to make this than it would to make boxed mac & cheese & it would be so much better! We don’t have a lot of cold storage when we travel so I think I would likely half the recipe. It would make a great “casserole” dish too with some added veggies & some leftover meat. Thanks for sharing!

    1. Thank you for sharing, Candee. I agree, making this really doesn’t take much longer than whipping up the boxed version. And I love the idea of serving this like a casserole with some veggies and meat added to the recipe.

  7. 5 stars
    We are a family of hard core Kraft mac n cheese fans. My husband and I have tried homemade from others and left wanting the box. I’ve tried switching over to Annies at least but no one is happy (except me-I can tolerate rice every once in a while and their rice mac n cheese allows me to have some too!). Last night, I made this and all loved it. My husband went back to the pot again and again which is saying a lot! I even adapted it for myself-a grain free pasta and subbed the flour for potato starch. I hope this means the end of boxed mac n cheese for my family-Thank you!!

  8. That looks a simple recipe for a busy mid week dinner. All my ingredients have to be gluten free so I would use specialist macaroni and cornflour (cornstarch)
    I always cook from from my larder and freezer, it saves time and money and I never cook just one meal at a time. I use enough ingredients to make at least two more meals and put them in the freezer for those busy days.

    Thank you for all your cleaning recipes. I use environmentally friendly products so like to try new recipes when I see them.

    Loraine