Hey! I was going to come post this! At our house, when we serve “mac and cheese” with dinner, we differentiate between “mac and cheese from a blue box” and “Margie’s famous mac and cheese”! 
However, to give ‘bump it up a notch’, I add two eggs to the cheese sauce (I beat the eggs in a large-ish bow, then ‘temper’ them with the rest of the cheese sauce!)
I made this for supper last night, and it was definitely the best Mac and Cheese we’ve ever had. I ended up substituting the shredded cheddar with a mixture of cheddar, a soft blue, gouda and a teeny bit of a triple cream (I had cheese to use up), but I think it would be just as good if I’d used just the cheddar, as well. Next time, I might reduce the nutmeg a tiny bit, or replace altogether with mustard powder, and see which way we prefer.
Double Cheddar Mac and Cheese
3 cups (750 mL) dry macaroni noodles (I used Catelli Smart Pasta)
2 tbsp (30 mL) butter
1/4 cup (50 mL) very finely chopped or coarsely grated onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp (2 m L) pepper
1/2 tsp (1 mL) nutmeg
1 tbsp (15 mL) all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups (375 mL) milk
1 pkg (250 g) cold pack Cheddar cheese (like McLaren’s Imperial)
1 cup (250 mL) shredded aged Cheddar cheese
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add macaroni. Cook according to package directions. Drain well.
Meanwhile, melt butter in a deep skillet on medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, pepper and nutmeg. Sprinkle flour evenly over onion mixture and blend well. Add a splash of the milk and blend until smooth.
Gradually add remaining milk, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes. Break up the cold pack cheese and add it a little at a time to the milk mixture until completely incorporated. Gradually add grated cheese, stirring well between additions. When all the cheese is incorporated into the sauce, remove pan from heat.
Blend the macaroni into the sauce mixture, stirring until evenly coated. Makes 6 to 8 servings.
(recipe from Dana McCauley’s food blog)
I’ve found that using a mixture of sharp cheddar, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese in a white sauce with onion gives incredible cheese flavor. If you use too much parmesan, the sauce does get a bit of a grainy texture, though. Some people really hate that, I guess, but I don’t mind, because it still tastes great.
I once tried to use pepper jack cheese, and that was a mistake. The whole dish turned out incredibly dry for some reason. I had some in a restaurant with green chilies in it, and I may try that next.
I had the mac and cheese at TGI Friday’s recently, and, IMO, bleu cheese in macaroni and cheese is a big mistake. OK, I guess I just don’t like bleu cheese. Blech! My brother-in-law and I were both picking those lumps out.
I like bleu cheese. But in mac and cheese? Ick. Where’s the pukey smiley when you need it? :eek: