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How about some cheese today? This creamy brie four cheese mac and cheese with buttery ritz crackers is melt in your mouth GOOD.
And pasta!!
It is kind of perfect after the day I had yesterday, or really the day the site had. Not real happy with my VPS host, Bluehost. We are not even going to talk about it except to say is that I am really sorry the site was down ALL day yesterday. So frustrating and just plain terrible. Ugh. Sorry if it caused you guys any inconvenience.
This mac and cheese is my apology.
WATCH HOW-TO VIDEO HERE:
I’d say it’s fair game. I mean just look at it. So creamy and buttery, and did I mention there is four cheeses and one of the cheeses is Brie?!?! Yes, Brie. In mac and cheese. It’s so good. And I would totally add some blue cheese crumbles if you are into it.
That would be good. I should have done that.
The Brie actually does not add a ton of amazing flavor. The flavor comes mostly from the sharp cheddar, fontina and havarti (my favorite cheese to add to mac and cheese!!), but the Brie does add amazing creaminess. Oh so creamy! I think you are going to freak. It is the best mac and cheese I have ever made. And eaten.
Oh, and did you guys notice?
My casserole dish? It is not glued together anymore. It is actually all in once piece and totally not toxic.
Yay!
Now I can eat all the mac and cheese. Not just the center. Thank God.
The only reason I made mac and cheese was because I am currently loaded with fancy and delicious cheeses. Definitely not a problem at all, I love it!
Here is the thing though, my grocery store pretty much just sucks. It is not very good and has very limited selections. BUT it does have a new killer cheese section. Guys, it is awesome and I love it, but you know, cheese is expensive…..
So I piled up on pretty much all the discounted cheese (AKA the old cheese). I bought ten eight-ounce wheels of Brie for ten dollars. Now that is a good deal. Especially for me since cheese takes forever to go bad up here where I live. It’s the one thing the elevation is good for (that and no bugs – too high for the little suckers, just a few tiny ants up here)!
Cheep (fancy) cheese equals really good mac and cheese.
So does buttery Ritz crackers, best mac-n-cheese topping ever.
Just like any mac and cheese recipe, this one is super easy. Make it ahead and everyone will love it. It is the perfect cozy meal for weeknights or the weekends. I am pretty sure it would be an awesome Thanksgiving side as well.
A little mac and cheese can never hurt.
Oh, and don’t mind my holiday Ritz crackers and Christmas bowls. I am just a tad too excited about them and had to share.
Creamy 4 Cheese Brie and Buttery Ritz Cracker Mac and Cheese
Servings: 6 servings
Calories Per Serving: 1012 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- 1 clove garlic minced or grated
- 1 1/2 cups crushed Ritz crackers about 1 sleeve
- 1 pound elbow pasta
- 1/4 cup flour
- 3 cups warm milk I used 2%
- 1 1/4 cups sharp white cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 cup fontina cheese shredded (add an extra 1/4 cup...if you want!)
- 1 1/4 cups havarti cheese shredded
- 4-6 ounces Brie rind removed and chopped (I surely used 6 ounces)
- 1/4 teaspoon mustard powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the pasta until al-dente. You want it to have a bit of bite. It will finish cooking in the oven. Drain well.
- While the pasta boils add 3 tablespoons butter to a medium skillet and melt. Add the garlic and sauté 30 seconds then throw in the crushed Ritz crackers and toss to coat.
- Toast the crumbs for 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Once the crumbs are lightly toasted remove form the heat and set aside.
- In the same pot you boiled the pasta, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let cook/bubble for 1 minute, stirring once or twice to avoid burning. Gradually whisk in the milk and raise the heat up to medium-high. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking frequently until the sauce has thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in all of the cheese, mustard powder, cayenne, salt and pepper. Stir until the cheese is fully melted. Stir in the pasta and transfer to the prepared baking dish.
- Evenly sprinkle on the toasted cracker crumbs and place the baking dish on a baking
- sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until the crumbs are golden brown and the sauce is bubbling.
- Remove from the oven and let sit five minutes (yeah, right). Dig in!!
Ok, now let’s just go grab some giant bowls!
Hello Tieghan
Fellow Cleveland Ohioan here!! I made this Mac and cheese and it was yummy my twin boys both liked it too which is always a plus!! Quick question tho. It wasn’t as creamy as what your looked like only things I did differently is I used shells foe pasta, when it was time to mix the butter and flour I did from that step on in a cast iron skillet, added pancetta and a little of the water from the pasta but less than a half a cup I’ve done that in other Mac and cheese recipes to help make it creamy. Could that have made it a bit grainy? Regardless it still tasted great just wondered if any of those things could have been the culprit?
Anyways thanks for all the fun recipes keep em coming! And your barn/home is amazing!! Happy cooking!
Jackie Z
Hey Jackie,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad you family enjoyed! I think adding the pancetta and water could have made this slightly grainy. I hope this helps for next time. xTieghan
This was SOOOOO good. It was devoured in seconds!! Thank you so much.
Thank you Kelly! xTieghan
This mac n cheese looks amazing! I’m going to make it as a side for a bbq dinner tonight. I noticed there are two similar recipes on the website, one that is topped with ritz and the other with shredded sourdough bread. There are only a few small differences. Do you like one recipe better? Thanks!
Hey Jennifer,
I love them both, I think it is personal preference for you as to which topping you like better. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Tried this tonight and it was AMAZING! Very easy, straight forward directions. For some reason whenever I melt cheese myself it comes out a tad grainy and I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. Regardless the flavors were spot on. Thank you so much for sharing!!
Hey Morgan!! Try melting the cheese at a lower temp. It sounds like you could be burning it an over cooking it just a little. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I am so glad you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
Hi! This looks incredible. Do you think there’s any way to incorporate figs or some kind of fig spread? I love new and fig spread on crackers and was searching to a recipe that has all 3. This was the closest – but if you don’t think it will make sense or bake well, i’ll keep as is. Thank you so much!
Hey Amanda!! YUMM. Figs or fig preserves would be delicious. If I where you, I would stir 2 tablespoons fig preserves into the cheese sauce, than I would half 3-4 figs and bake them right on top of the mac and cheese along with the ritz. SO GOOD and great idea! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
I’m pretty new to this but I thought comments were supposed to be what people who prepared a recipe thought of it. I’ve read many, many comments but no one has made this Mac & Cheese! Every one wants to make it, but no one has. Maybe I’ll be the first!
I hope you do make this Anna! Thank you so much! xTieghan
OMG! Just made this recipe. So freaking good!!!
I was a little intimidated by the number of ingredients, but I did it.
Made one swap, on the topping. Instead of crackers, went for a panko/melted butter/thyme crumble topping. ?
Thank you for this recipe.
Ooo yum! I am so glad you loved this Araina! Thank you!!
You are using cavatappi not “elbow”. It’s like calling bechamel sauce “white sauce” Call things as they are intended and don’t be a contributor to the dumbing down of the American Mind.
Hi Mark! Thank you so much for this correction. People are welcome to use either type of pasta they choose. Mac and cheese is more commonly made with elbow pasta, so that is why it is stated under the ingredients. I hope you have an amazing day and Happy Holidays!
WOW! You are TOO NICE! What a jerk!
I made this last night for a Christmas Dinner It was a Hugh hit. I will be adding this to my Christmas meuns for sure.
That is so amazing! I am so glad you loved this! Thank you Tonya!
I had about 1/2 a Brie wheel left Over from an ugly Christmas sweater party I had last weekend and came across this recipe I decided to try it out oh my gosh so good. I’m not supposed to do a whole lot of carbs because I’ve had weight-loss surgery and mac & cheese is like my kryptonite I just can’t stay away? I did change the recipe a tiny bit. I cut the amount of pasta in half and added about 1 cup of shredded rotisserie chicken and a cup of steamed broccoli.. still decadent but with less guilt.. and definitely one I’ll make again
I am so happy you loved this recipe! Thank you so much Sarah!
This mac and cheese was the best darn dish I made all year! I made it moments before I left for camping and took it with me this weekend to yosemite. I left most of it for the guests that were gonna be over for thanksgiving dinner, and my sister texted me saying it was definitely all gone. The moment I tried it straight out the oven I knew I will be making it again. Definitely has that wow factor. My friends devoured it all in seconds on our trip. I can’t wait for work to have a potluck so I can make it again. Thank you so much for this recipe!
This is so awesome! I am so glad you and your guests love this dish Jane! Thank you!!
How many servings would you say this is?? Also, have you ever assembled it and then baked it a couple of days later? Just trying to plan out my Thanksgiving week. Thanks!
I believe I saw in one of the above comments that she mentioned it’s served about 10 people and she made it up in a 9 by 13 dish. She also said it’s fine to make it at least a day ahead and then reheat in the oven it may take a little bit longer to cook because it won’t be warm coming straight off the stove top so the reheating might take a little bit longer. Also maybe to tin foil the over the top because the crumb top might burn.
I’ve made it had some and then reheated it for dinner for like two three days in a row and it was delicious. Hope this helps. Enjoy!
This will serving about 6-8. Yes, this works great to make in advance and then bake later. Please let me know if you have any other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Happy Thanksgiving! 🙂
My family loves this Mac and cheese and it’s requested at every dinner or cookout we have as a group! I’m making it tomorrow for our 4th of July party!!!
Thats so awesome! Might actually be my favorite thing to hear!!
Hope you have a amazing fourth!
Hello there!
Just wanted to say thank you for sharing this Mac and Cheese Recipe. It is officially a thanksgiving tradition for the boys to make this dish, they have been preparing it for the past 2 years and love how delicious it is! Thank you!
That is amazing to hear! I am so glad one of my recipes made it into your family tradition, and you guys love it so much! Thank you Rose!
The white dish on this post with the handles. It’s beautiful. Where did you buy it?
Thanks,
x
West Elm, but a while a go. Thanks!