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Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Panko and Bacon

By: 👩‍🦳 Linda · · · 🗨 51 Comments

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Best ever Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Panko and Bacon – all the trappings of mac and cheese with added crisp crumb topping and bacon.

Best ever Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Panko and Bacon - all the trappings of mac and cheese with added crisp crumb topping and bacon. | RotiNRice.com #macandcheese #macaroniandcheese #comfortfood

Macaroni and Cheese is comfort food to many. I see this dish being served at almost every family gathering I have attended. It may sound strange but for those of us who did not grow up here, mac and cheese is not something we would warm up to.

Up until now, I have never prepared mac and cheese in my kitchen. I panicked when I was asked to prepare a slow cooker version for a church event recently. My first thought was to swap with someone to prepare a different dish. After thinking about it a little bit more, I finally decided to go ahead as planned. Ro-Jiro, my youngest son assured me that he will be more than happy to eat what I prepared.

A delicious serving of mac and cheese.

Recipe from Box

The first thing I did was to go buy a box of macaroni. Fortunately, the Creamette macaroni had a recipe I could use. I made a few minor changes and was pleasantly surprised that my Macaroni and Cheese was very well received at the church event. It was one of the first things to disappear on the buffet table. Ro-Jiro said it was really good and suggested that I add some parmesan cheese the next time I make it.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

A week later, I did just that. As a treat, I also added some bacon and panko breadcrumbs. This time I baked it to give it a slight crust. Ro-Jiro was a happy boy. Even Ro-Ri San asked for a portion. I have made this Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Panko and Bacon three times now and it will not be my last. 🙂

Baked mac and cheese fresh out of the oven ready to be served.

Similar Tools Used in Making This Baked macaroni and Cheese

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Cuisinart MultiClad Pro Stainless Steel 3-Quart Saucepan with Cover
Pyrex 8″ Square Baking Dish with Blue Plastic Lid

Best ever Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Panko and Bacon - all the trappings of mac and cheese with added crisp crumb topping and bacon. | RotiNRice.com #macandcheese #macaroniandcheese #comfortfood

Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Panko and Bacon

Yummiest ever Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Panko and Bacon - all the trappings of mac and cheese with added crisp crumb topping and bacon.
Author : Linda Ooi
Course : Main Dish
Cuisine : American
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate this Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings : 6
Calories : 539kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 8 oz macaroni (225g)
  • ¼ cup (30g) panko breadcrumbs
  • 4 strips bacon
  • 2 cups shredded cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, and Monterey Jack) (8oz/225g)
  • ½ cup parmesan cheese (50g)
  • 2½ cups low fat milk (600ml)
  • 3 tbsp (45g) butter
  • 2 tbsp all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp dry mustard
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
 

  • Cook pasta according to packaging instructions. Drain and place in a large bowl. Stir in 1 tablespoon butter into hot pasta. Set aside.
  • Grease an 8”x8” deep casserole dish. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
  • In a medium sized pot, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Stir in all-purpose flour and dry mustard and cook for about 2 minutes. Gradually stir in milk. When it comes to a boil, season with salt and pepper. Add cheese blend and stir till melted. Pour onto pasta and mix well. Dish into prepared casserole dish.
  • Top with parmesan cheese and bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly.
  • In the meantime, fry bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towel and crumble into bacon bits.
  • Remove casserole from oven. Sprinkle bacon bits and panko onto pasta. Return to oven and bake for another 10 minutes.
  • Remove and serve immediately.

Nutrition

Calories: 539kcal
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Baked mac and cheese topped with bacon.

Enjoy…..and have a wonderful day! 😎


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Comments

  1. Russell at Chasing Delicious says

    So does this mean you’ve warmed up to mac & cheese? I grew up with the boxed stuff and love it anyways. Once I was on my own I started making it from scratch and was amazed at the difference it made.

    Your version here looks scrumptious! The addition of panko really looks interesting.

    Reply

    • Biren says

      Hi Russell, thanks for visiting! I guess you can say that I have finally warmed up to mac and cheese. Adding the bacon and panko made a lot of difference to the dish. 🙂

      Reply

    • Biren says

      I love cheese but for some reason, I am slow to warm up to this dish. The bacon, though not healthy amkes it very tasty. Jiro loves it! 🙂

      Reply

  5. LeQuan says

    Mac n cheese was a big childhood favorite of mine and now my kiddies have started to like it. I like tha you added Panko to yours and finished by baking to add some texture to the dish. The bacon is a wonderful flavour addition as well. Your Mac n cheese looks yummy. So cool that you’ve now made your recipes printable, Biren.

    Reply

  13. Katherine Martinelli says

    Awesome recipe! The only thing that could make mac and cheese better is bacon! I also did not grow up eating it even though I’m American, but when I discovered it there was no turning back.

    Reply

  14. Victoria says

    As a complete macaroni and cheese whore, I have to say yours really looks awesome! I’m so glad you faced your fears of the unknown and have since become a mac and cheese master! Also, congrats on the new printing feature, it’s an excellent addition 🙂

    Reply

    • Biren says

      You are funny Victoria. 🙂 I am glad I faced my fears. Will try out new versions in the days ahead.

      Thanks! It took me a long time to look into the printing option but I am glad it is done. Now, I have the major task of updating my posts.

      Reply

  15. Adora's Box says

    That really looks good and comforting. I like the crumb crust and of course the bacon bits. Macaroni cheese is not as popular here but my daughter just loves any pasta with lots of cheese.

    Reply

  17. pachecopatty says

    Hi Biren, you’re making me hungry;-)
    That was fun tweeting with you this am, we’ll get the hang of it some day! I just commented on your blog using my ipad but not sure if it went through so sorry if you get two of the same comments from me;-)

    Reply

  21. Jill@MadAboutMacarons says

    Biren, it’s true: used to have this when I was little and so a real comfort food but your version of adding the bacon and exotic panko takes it to another level. No wonder you’ve been asked to make more and more…

    Reply

  29. The Harried Cook says

    Biren! I have been looking forward to checking out your site, and finally got to it.. and boy, am I glad! You have such an awesome website here… I am so glad to have ‘met’ you, and I will be visiting much more regularly 🙂 Thank you for your kind words on my blog & for entering my giveaway! 🙂

    Reply

  30. Lyn says

    Hi Biren! That’s so sweet of your boy, Ro-Jiro! Lucky that he assured you that he’ll eat it, if not you won’t discover this great recipe! 😀
    As I’m living in SG, Mac and Cheese is not so commonly cooked here I can say… Indeed I only got to know about this recipe THIS YEAR! LOL
    I love this very much the very first time I tried and from then on, I’d already cooked it 3 times! 😀
    As I still haven’t got an oven yet, so I didn’t get the chance to taste the baked version but I’m gonna try it when oven is here! 😀
    Hope you have a wonderful weekend! ^.^

    Reply

    • Biren says

      Yes, Ro-Jiro is a sweetie! It took me a while to warm up to mac & cheese but I am glad I did. I still have to go slow though as it does pack some calories. 🙂 I hope you get to try the baked version soon.

      Reply

  31. Nasi Lemak Lover says

    can not let my kids see this now, they will sure ask me to make for them immediately, hahaha!! anyway, i will make a surprise with this for them one day! This look absolutely delicious.

    Reply

  32. denise @ bread expectations says

    I didn’t grow up on Mac and Cheese but I love it anyway, and my kids are absolutely addicted to it! We’ve never tried instant though, as it’s not common here. I love the bacon and panko addition, and congrats on getting your recipes printable! Btw – I have the very same baking dish LOL So retro 😉

    Reply

    • Biren says

      Hey Denise, so glad for your visit. 🙂 It took me a long time to warm up to this dish. I would have added some pepper flakes but Ro-Jiro has such a mild palate, I decided against it. Phew…it took me forever to come up with the printable recipe but I am glad it is done. That is an old baking dish but still in very good shape. I love it still. 🙂

      Reply

  34. Liz says

    Hooray for printable recipes…doing the happy dance! And this mac and cheese sounds outstanding….with the bacon and crusty topping! YUM.

    Reply

  36. Roxana GreenGirl says

    I read when you first shared on facebook about the slow cooked mac&cheese and now that you shared the recipe I can’t wait to try it. Sounds way much better than the store bought one and probably even than the one I use to make. Thanks for sharing Biren 🙂

    Reply

  38. Joe Doza says

    Just made your version of baked mac n’ cheese and it was very tasty! I never thought this timeless dish could have so many different textures and tastes, needless to say, I’ll be making this for company luncheons and other occasions! Thanks!

    Reply