Macaroni and Cheese

Everyone is always looking for the best macaroni and cheese and everyone thinks theirs is the best. I am no different. Thru watching the cooking shows on Food Network, particularity Drive Ins, Dinners and Dives (which I just happen to love, it's one of my favorite shows). I have perfected our families macaroni and cheese, well at least that is what my husband and 8 year old daughter say anyways.  Here is a picture of the mac and cheese I made tonight for dinner.

and it was very very good. So instead of doing a Pinterest recipe  would make one of my own for once.

Mac and Cheese

8 oz Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese - or what ever your family likes.
8 oz Monterrey Jack Cheese
about 8 slices of American Cheese
1/2 container of Deli Parmesan Cheese - I usually by Stella Brand and its in the specialty cheeses in the Deli
3 cups of milk - I use 2% but you can use what ever you want even Heavy Cream
1/4 cup of butter
1/3 cup flour
a squirt of yellow mustard or you can use dry mustard about a tsp full
1 box of Cellentani - that is the pasta I love to use the most. It holds on to the cheese plus there is some in the pasta but you can use what ever you want
I a lot of times will use about 1/4 lb chuck of Velveeta, I like that creaminess it adds to the mac and cheese, but I didn't have any tonight. 
I use a 9x9 baking dish, sometimes cause it really fills the pan I will use a slightly bigger pan. LOL Depends on how lazy I am.  Sprayed with Pam
Preheat oven to 400 degrees

I cook the pasta and leave it just a tad bit more al denta cause I bake my pasta, love that crusty cheese top it gets.  Grate your cheese while your pasta is cooking.
Drain the paste and I just leave it in the strainer, I don't like to dirty too many dishes so I use the same pan as I boiled the pasta in to make the cheese sauce.
Put the butter in the pan, melt it.
Add Flour and stir untill mix together and cook for at least a 1 or 2  minutes. Its important to cook the flour so that your sauce won't taste floury or pasty
Pour in your 3 cups of milk and whisk, continue whisking till it comes to a boil. This is the only place you want this cheese sauce to boil. It's the only way to tell how thick your sauce will be,. You want it to be thick like a nice thick gravy.  If your sauce boils with the cheese in it, it makes it grainy.
Once it has boiled turn your heat down to low, you just want it to keep the sauce warm while you add the cheese.
I cut the American cheese in chunks and add that first, once that has almost all melt if I am using Velveeta I add that next. Then the rest of the cheeses one at a time, leaving a good hand full for the top of the mac and cheese.  You can turn your heat off now when most of the cheese is melted. Just finish whisking till all the cheese is melted and mixed together.
Squirt in a good squirt of yellow mustard, stir in the pasta put it your baking dish and top with the rest of the cheese. Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is as crusty as you want. Dinner is ready. 

Served it with some Italian Chicken Sausages and tomatoes. It was yummy