Out of the Box: Three-cheese mac with crispy bread topping

by Caitlin Saniga

This macaroni recipe is great, but it makes a lot! You'll probably have leftovers. Some advice: Don't heat this up in the microwave. Use an oven-safe dish to heat up only as much as you'll need. I put about two servings in a Pyrex dish and placed it in the oven for 6-8 minutes on 350 degrees.

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for baking dish
• salt and pepper
• 1 pound cavatappi pasta (corkscrews)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 4 cups whole milk
• 4 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese, coarsely grated (1 cup)
• 4 ounces Havarti cheese, coarsely grated (1 cup)
• 4 ounces Muenster cheese, coarsely grated (1 cup)
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 6 slices nice Italian bread, crusts removed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

My deli didn't have blocks of any of the cheese in this recipe. So I bought prepackaged cheese slices. I ran the blade of a pizza cutter back and forth over the cheese to "grate" it.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Butter a shallow 9-by-13-inch baking dish; set aside.

Generously salt the boiling water; add the pasta. Cook, according to package instructions, until 2 minutes short of al dente. Drain pasta, and return to the pot.

While pasta is cooking, melt butter in a large saucepan (the biggest one you have!) over medium heat. Transfer 2 tablespoons of the melted butter to a small bowl; set aside for topping. Add the flour, mustard powder and cayenne to the remaining butter in the saucepan. Cook, whisking, for about 1 minute (do not let flour darken). Whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until sauce is thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove the sauce from heat. Gradually whisk in the cheeses; add the Worcestershire sauce, and season generously with salt and pepper. Add the sauce to the pasta, and toss to combine; transfer to prepared baking dish.

In a medium bowl, toss the bread in the reserved melted butter. Scatter the bread pieces over the pasta.

Place the dish on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until the topping is golden and the sauce is bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe adapted from: Martha Stewart

*Throughout November, “Out of the Box” will guide you away from prepackaged mac and cheese and will feature oodles of our favorite recipes — all of which can be found here.