MINI MAC AND CHEESE CUPS

Hey guys , it's Joanne from 15 spatulas .

And today we're going to make mini mac and cheese cups .

This is such a great recipe for the holidays or for entertaining because you take this beloved comfort dish that people normally have to eat in a bowl with a spoon and you turn it into this d for appetizer that people can just pick up with their hands and eat .

You can literally have your glass of wine in one hand and your mac and cheese cup in the other hand , it's great for mingling and it's a fun and different way to eat your cheese and wine .

Let me show you how to make it to get started .

Bring a pot of water to a boil and add a tablespoon of salt to season the water .

Give it a stir to dissolve the salt and then add eight ounces of elbow macaroni .

You usually find this in £1 boxes .

So this is a half box , stir it around .

So the pasta doesn't stick and cook for two minutes less than the package says .

So I'm cooking this for five minutes instead of seven .

In the meantime , grate your cheese I've got a half pound of sharp cheddar and it's probably apparent by now that I really like to grate cheese myself .

I think the quality of the cheese is better than the bag cheese and also the pre shredded cheeses anti caking agents in them , which can cause issues with the smoothness of your sauce .

It takes a couple of minutes to do , but I really find it to be worth the effort when the pasta is done , remove it with the strainer or drain it in the sink and then empty the pot , put it back on the burner .

And we're going to use the same pan for the sauce because that means less dishes melt two tablespoons of butter in the pot over medium heat and then add a quarter teaspoon of paprika .

Give that a stir to combine and then add two tablespoons of all purpose flour , stir that until it's smooth and there are no more lumps and then add a half cup of whole milk , increase the heat to high and cook this for a couple of minutes .

Stirring frequently until the mixture thickens up and it will be very thick .

Take the pot off the heat and add all of the shredded cheese .

Give that a stir to get things going and then add all of the pasta which should still be hot and this will help the cheese melt further .

Give everything a stir to distribute the cheese and get the pasta coated in the sauce and the cheddar and then grab a mini muffin pan and spray it generously with non-stick cooking spray and use a cookie scoop or just a spoon to portion out the mac and cheese and then place it into the cups .

It's ok if we stick up a little bit from the tins because we're going to pack it down later .

Once the tins are filled , you're going to compact the mac and cheese down .

And this is so the mac and cheese cups hold together later on and don't fall apart .

And I also think it gives them a nicer shape instead of a blob of mac and cheese .

It really looks like a little mac and cheese muffin , bake the mac and cheese cups in a 400 °F oven for 15 minutes until lightly brown on the edges and bubbling hot and let the mac and cheese cups cool for about 10 minutes .

And then you can run a knife around the edges and pop the mac and cheese cups out of the tin .

I love to garnish the tops with some green onion or Chis for color and then they're ready to enjoy .

I've got a few of my mac and cheese cups to taste .

Let's give it a try .

Hm .

So one thing I'll say right off the bat is this isn't a saucy mac and cheese because then it wouldn't hold together .

I would describe this more as a gooey mac and cheese , you get those strands that really stretches , you bite into it .

It's got really intense sharp cheddar flavor and I love how it gets kind of crispy and brown on the edges while it's bubbling away in the oven .

So good .

Well , I hope you guys enjoyed learning how to make this recipe .

And if you did let me know if a thumbs up , make sure you subscribe .

So you get future recipe videos .

Thanks for watching .

I'll see you guys next time .