Cream Cheese Pasta Sauce
This is not your everyday pasta sauce. Just by looking at the ingredients, you probably already have an idea of how sinful and indulgent this recipe is.
Using cream cheese is a great way to transform your pasta sauce to a whole ‘nother level of deliciousness. It’s rich, creamy and mild in flavor. A perfect compliment to chicken or bacontwo favorite protein for pasta.
Mac And Cheese Sauce Versatility
Love this sauce and want to mix things up? Here are some ideas on how to repurpose this sauce for something other than mac!
Use on any noodle all out of macaroni noodles? You can literally use 1 lb. of any noodle under the sun!
Nachos we love using this sauce on top of nachos. Think loaded nachos with all the fixings + this cheese sauce.
Burgers/Sandwiches how good would this easy mac and cheese sauce be on top of a burger or sandwich?! Im drooling.
Chili Mac and Cheese mix this cheese sauce with 1 lb. of noodles and a batch of homemade beef chili for some chili mac! Check out our sister sites Chili Mac and Cheese recipe!
Dip when I dip you dip we dip. Grab your favorite tortilla chip and dip away!
More of our Favorite
Why Isn’t My Cheese Sauce Smooth
One reason may be that the rouxthe melted butter and flour mix that thickens the white saucemight be overcooked or burnt. The recipe’s recommended heat and cook times should prevent that. It’s also important to add the dairy slowly and stir constantly while doing so. The cheese may be a factor as well. Freshly shredded cheese works better than packaged shredded cheese. When adding it, the heat should be low to avoid breaking the cheese, which will cause a grainy sauce. Try adding half of the cheese and stir that in until it melts, then add the rest. You can also remove the pan from the heat during that step, heating it only if needed to aid melting.
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How To Thicken Cheese Sauce
The ratio below will create a perfectly thick and cheesy sauce and shouldnt require thickening.
The best way to thicken a cheese sauce would be to add more cheese! Who can resist a thick, creamy, savory cheese sauce perfect for making Homemade Mac and Cheese too!
Another way to thicken a cheese sauce is to add a little bit of cornstarch slurry added a little at a time to hot cheese sauce. This method is less desirable, you do risk the cheese separating if you re-heat it too much when thickening.
How Do You Make Cheese Sauce From Scratch
This homemade cheese sauce is ready to enjoy in almost no time because the recipe is so simple. It uses well known ingredients that are easy to work with and prepare. You will be so glad you have this recipe in your collection!
The Recipe Critic Pro Tip:
Your cheese will start to get clumpy or stringy if it gets too hot. To avoid this, add the cheese end at the very end, then promptly remove it from the heat.
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To Bake Or Not To Bake:
You dont have to bake the mac and cheese in this recipe. Everything gets fully cooked and is essentially ready to eat after the cheese and noodles are added. However, I love the extra gooeyness that comes when the cheese is baked and I think baking it adds a level of sophistication you just dont get without.
Keep These Tips In Mind When Cooking With Cheese:
- Shred, crumble, or finely dice the cheese before heating to ensure quick, smooth melting. The colder the cheese is, the easier it will be to cut.
- The less you heat cheese, the better. When making soup, sauce, or fondue, add the cheese last then heat it only as long as it takes to melt. If it gets too hot it will get tough. Often, you can remove the pan from the burner the residual heat will melt the cheese.
- Allow the shredded cheese to come to room temperature before adding it to a hot mixture.
- Starch will keep the cheese from curdling. If using all-purpose flour, add it to the mixture before the cheese it needs to be cooked for a few minutes to remove the starchy taste.
- Adding an acidic ingredient such as wine or lemon juice will help prevent the cheese from becoming stringy. This is why most cheese fondue recipes have a base of white wine. Simply sprinkle some lemon juice over the shredded cheese before heating it.
- Reduced-fat cheeses melt differently than regular full-fat cheeses. Reduced fat cheese will take longer to melt and will not have the same velvety consistency in the sauce. Be sure to shred reduced-fat cheese very finely, and allow it to melt over very low heat while stirring constantly.
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The 31 Best Things To Cook This Decemberyour Browser Indicates If You’ve Visited This Link
And we’ve got you covered for those hectic weeknights, too, because December has a way of turning into a whirlwind and you can’t survive on cookies alone! While things are still a little quiet, go ahead and bookmark a couple of quick and simple recipes so you’ll be dinner-ready.
The Kitchn
Adding Cheese To Bchamel
Béchamel is a basic sauce so its easy to flavor it up in different ways. One of my favorite things to add is cheese. In fact, homemade macaroni and cheese is made with a cheese-doused béchamel.
You start by making your béchamel and then you take it off the heat to add in the cheese. I also like to add some Dijon mustard and cayenne to mine. A small amount of spice helps to balance all that delicious creaminess.
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Using The Cheese Sauce
While mac n cheese is the obvious choice, this cheese sauce is also an amazing dip or drizzle for vegetables, especially broccoli. Or how about pouring it over a baked potato and crumbling some bacon on top?
Its so good you can even just dip bread or crackers in it. Go for it!
Id love to hear all the ways you find to enjoy this.
- 1 tsp. Dijion mustard
- a pinch of cayenne pepper
I Know There Are A Lot Of Folks These Days Who Strive For A Dairy
But if you are one of those folksyou may want to look away
Because today Im talkin about the most glorious cheese sauce recipe you ever did see not only does it have cheese in it, but it has milk and butter too. Yeah, pretty much a dairy explosion. In your mouth.
The average American makes cheese sauce by buying a jar of Cheese Whiz® or melting down a ginormous brick of the no-refrigeration-required-and-will-last-until-Armageddon Velveeta®.
But didja know you can make this cheese sauce recipe at home? From scratch? And no weird ingredients required? Oh yeah baby
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What Is A Mac And Cheese Roux And Why Do I Need It
A roux is essentially a way to thicken a sauce or liquid. You need a fat and a flour in order to make this thickening agent and then you need to heat it to activate it.
The reason why you dont want to skip the roux for this mac and cheese sauce recipe is that the roux is what helps make it thick and luscious.
Gather & Measure The Ingredients
This easy mac and cheese recipe is super fast-paced once you start cooking, so it’s important to have all the ingredients measured and ready to go! As you can see there are only eight, common ingredients in this recipe that most of us have on hand at all times! We will discuss the ingredients and possible substitutions later in this post .
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Winter Meals That Feature Pecansyour Browser Indicates If You’ve Visited This Link
Seeking comfort from the cold in the form of a wholesome meal is a perfect way to cap off a day with loved ones. During the winter months when brisk temperatures chill you to the bone, warming up with hearty dishes at the family table can bring everyone together.
Williamsport Sun-Gazette
Hearty Wholesome Winter Mealsyour Browser Indicates If You’ve Visited This Link
Seeking comfort from the cold in the form of a wholesome meal is a perfect way to cap off a day with loved ones. During the winter months when brisk temperatures chill you to the bone, warming up with hearty dishes at the family table can bring everyone together.
The University Daily Kansan
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What To Do With Leftovers
Storing. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Reheating. We typically reheat this pasta in the microwave, but this can also be done in a pot on the stove. You may need to add a little more broth if its too thick when reheating.
Freezing. If you plan to freeze this dish, leave the pasta undercooked as the freezing process will make thoroughly cooked pasta mushy. Store the cooked dish in a freezer safe airtight container for months.
To reheat, thaw in the fridge and reheat on the stove top stirring constantly to keep the cream base from curdling.
Just another quick, easy dinner meal! We hope you love this easy pasta dish.
What to serve with Creamy Penne Pasta:
Tips For Cheese Sauce Success
Here are a few tips to help make sure your nacho cheese sauce is a success:
- Make sure to cook the flour in the butter for one minute. This helps cook out the floury flavor.
- Use medium cheddar for smoother results. Sharp cheddar tends to break or become grainy easier than medium cheddar.
- Remove the pot from the heat before stirring in the cheese. Overheating the sauce once the cheese has been added can cause the sauce to seize up and become thick and/or grainy. If needed, use only low heat to help the cheese fully melt.
- Use block cheese and hand shred it when possible. Pre-shredded cheeses sometimes contain a lot of anti-caking powders, which can cause a powdery flavor in your cheese sauce.
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
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Making Mac And Cheese Ahead Of Time
- Make as directed , transfer to baking dish and cool completely. Cover tightly with foil and refrigerate 1-2 days ahead.
- Before baking, let dish sit on counter for 30 minutes.
- Bake at recipe temperature for 25-35 minutes, until hot and bubbly.
As a caveat, this recipe, as with most mac and cheese recipes, loses some of its creaminess when made ahead. This dish has been tested when made right away, which yields the best results.
I would increase the amount of sauce slightly if you need to make this recipe ahead of time.
Can I Bake This Recipe
At this point of stovetop mac and cheese, you can choose to transfer to a 9 x 13 inch baking dish, top with more cheese and other toppings of choice, bake at 350 degrees F. for 20-25 minutes for a baked mac and cheese. This is another fantastic option. Adding buttered bread crumbs and bacon is another winning option before baking to add a nice crunch. Try adding cooked beef or chicken for more dinner options too.
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Best Mac And Cheese Sauce
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No matter if youre making stovetop mac and cheese or baked mac and cheese, this is the best mac and cheese sauce on the internet!
Made with simple ingredients such as a mac and cheese roux, cheddar cheese, salt, and pepper, this cheese sauce for mac and cheese is creamy and scrumptious.
Obviously, if youre on this site you are a cheese lover. I mean, we are The Cheese Knees after all!
Every cheese website deserves to have a signature mac and cheese sauce thats easy to make, creamy, and perfect on any noodle! PS: if you havent tried our classic mac and cheese, you need to now!
How Do You Make A Smooth Cheese Sauce
To get the smoothest cheese sauce possible, follow these golden rules:
- Use full-fat cheese that you grate yourself as bagged cheese has additives that can prevent it from melting smoothly.
- Let the shredded cheese sit at room temperature for a short time so youre not putting cold cheese into hot liquid.
- Remove the sauce from heat before you stir in the cheese. Overheated cheese can clump.
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Variations Of Mac And Cheese
- Bacon if you love bacon, feel free to add some crispy, crumbled bacon to the topping, or even inside the mac and cheese as well!
- Stovetop if youd prefer not to bake this mac and cheese, you dont have to! Make sure you boil your pasta until al dente , and youll only need about 3 3 1/2 cups of cheese total. No need to layer the pasta and cheese, just add all the cheese to the sauce, then combine with the pasta.
- Different Toppings Im a huge fan of the cheese layer on top, since it gets nice and crispy, but we also love tossing 1 cup of panko with 2 Tbsp of melted butter and using that as a topping. 1 cup of crushed Ritz crackers with 2 Tbsp of butter work amazingly well too!
- Different Baking Times the recipe calls for a lower baking temperature and time, but most of the time I find myself adjusting that based on my familys tastes. I like to bake this mac and cheese at 350 F degrees for 30 minutes, then broil for 2-3 minutes to get that glorious cheesy crust.
How To Make Cheddar Cheese Sauce
To make about 4 cups of cheese sauce, melt Cabot Salted Butter or Cabot Extra Creamy Premium Sea Salted Butter in large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour a little at a time, until well blended. Continue stirring for a minute or two longer.
Whisk in milk and continue stirring until sauce is thickened. Add grated Cabot Extra Sharp Cheddar cheese, stirring until melted and blended.
For another rich, easy cheese sauce, make our Roasted Garlic Cheddar Cheese Sauce. Did you know Cabot is a co-operative of farm families who continuously strive to produce the best dairy products around? Wed really appreciate it if you could rate and review this cheese sauce recipe when you have the chance.
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What Type Of Cheese
This classic mac and cheese recipe is made with cheddar cheese. I particularly love medium or sharp cheddar cheese but any type will do. If you want a more luxurious mac and cheese or youre really trying to impress a crowd, you could use a combination of different cheeses. Just be sure to select a type of cheese that is good for melting, like white cheddar, smoked gouda, gruyere, brie, goat cheese, mozzarella, or fontina.
How To Make A Cheese Sauce
Heres where it gets good! Really good! To make a cheese sauce:
Remember to always remove from the heat before adding cheese, the milk will still be plenty hot enough to melt it. Cheese can separate or become grainy if it gets too hot.
Be sure to adjust for taste, feel free to add a splash of hot sauce or garlic powderanything that you want!
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Cheese Sauce Step By Step
Classic cheese sauce begins with béchamel a simple white sauce made of butter, flour, milk, and a few seasonings. Cheese is then added to the white sauce to create cheese sauce . Here are the three basic steps to make cheese sauce:
It’s that simple, but the trick is knowing how to make the roux, how to add the milk without creating lumps, and how to add the cheese so the sauce turns out smooth and not grainy.
How To Make Cheese Sauce Step By Step Photos
Start by placing 2 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp flour in a small sauce pot.
Heat the flour and butter over medium flame and whisk together until they become bubbly and foamy. Continue whisking for about 60 seconds. This mixture is called a roux and is what will thicken your sauce. Letting the roux cook for about 60 seconds slightly toasts the flour and gets rid of that raw floury flavor, but you want it to stay blonde, so if it begins to brown, remove it from the heat.
Whisk in one cup of whole milk. Turn the heat up slightly and let it come to a simmer . Because the small volume, it should come to a simmer very quickly .
When it reaches a simmer, the milk will thicken. When its thick enough to coat a spoon like in the photo, turn off the heat.
Whisk in 6oz. shredded medium cheddar, one hand full at a time, until it is melted into the sauce. If needed, put the pot back over a low flame to help it melt, but the residual heat should do most of the work.
Finally, season the sauce with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp chili powder.
Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings if needed. And thats it! Now you have real ingredient, really delicious, homemade nacho cheese sauce.
This post either just ruined your life or made your day. Or maybe both.
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