Adapted from Alton Brown's recipe. This is a a favorite of my wife's, she endeavors to make it several times a year. We usually double the recipe.
Ingredients
- Elbow Macaroni (1/2 lb)
- Butter (3 tbsp)
- Flour (3 tbsp)
- Powdered Mustard (1 tbsp)
- Milk (3 cups)
- Yellow Onion (1/2 cup, finely diced)
- Bay Leaf (1)
- Paprika (1/2 tsp)
- Egg (1 large)
- Sharp Cheddar (12 oz, shredded)
- Salt (1 tsp)
- Black Pepper (to taste, freshly ground)
Topping
- Butter (3 tbsp)
- Panko Bread Crumbs (1 cup, be generous especially if multiplying the recipe)
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add pasta, and cook to al dente.
- While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large pan (large enough to hold both the sauce and pasta).
- Whisk in flour and mustard, continue whisking for around 5 minutes.
- Stir in the milk, onion, bay leaf, and paprika. Simmer for 10 minutes and then remove the bay leaf.
- Temper in the egg, stir in 3/4 of the cheese, and season with salt and pepper.
- Fold in the drained macaroni.
- Pour the mixture into a casserole dish, topping with reserved cheese.
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan and toss the bread crumbs to coat. Top the macaroni with the bread crumbs.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.