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One Pot Baked Spinach and Artichoke Mac and Cheese.
You know those fallback recipes? The ones you make over and over again? Well, this One Pot Baked Spinach and Artichoke Mac and Cheese is mine. It’s the easiest and best mac-and-cheese recipe. It uses just one pot, and the ingredients and methods are simple. My trick is to first boil the pasta in just enough water to start the cooking process, then add milk and cream cheese. That means there’s no boiling and draining the pasta, and no fussing around with making a roux either. Plus the cream cheese creates a light and creamy sauce without having to add any additional flour-like in a béchamel.
What’s really great about this recipe is just how adaptable it is. When my brothers are around, I omit the veggies, but I include a few chipotle peppers in adobo, and I use half pepper jack and half cheddar cheese. It’s one of their favorites!
Looking for other easy one pot pastas? Here are my favorites:
One Pot Creamy French Onion Pasta Bake
Slow Cooker Saucy Sunday Bolognese Pasta
One Pot Creamy Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
Lastly, if you make this One Pot Baked Spinach and Artichoke Mac and Cheese, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
One Pot Baked Spinach and Artichoke Mac and Cheese
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 817 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing
- 1 (1-pound) box short-cut pasta, such as macaroni
- 2 cups whole milk (see Note)
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cubed
- 3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- Ground cayenne pepper
- 2 cups packed fresh baby spinach, chopped
- 1 (8-ounce) jar marinated artichokes, drained and roughly chopped
- 1½ cups crushed Ritz crackers (about 1 sleeve) (about 1 sleeve)
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.2. In a large saucepan, bring 4 cups of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes. Stir in the milk and cream cheese and cook until the cream cheese has melted and the pasta is al dente, about 5 minutes more. 3. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in 2 cups of the cheddar and 3 tablespoons of the butter. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Stir in the spinach and artichokes. If the sauce feels too thick, add ¼ cup of milk or water to thin it.4. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top with the remaining 1 cup of cheddar.5. In a medium bowl, stir together the crackers, the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter, and the garlic powder. Sprinkle the crumbs evenly over the mac and cheese.6. Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the crumbs are golden, about 20 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes and serve. Store any leftovers refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Notes
Note: Have a little extra milk or water on hand. Once you’ve added everything, you can decide whether you’re happy with the consistency. If you need to thin the sauce out a bit, simply add more liquid.
Have prepared this several times for friends and family. It is delicious!!
Have 12 coming for dinner and I will get an earful from this group without meat. Have you added chicken before with this recipe?
Thanks for making it easy to make my friends think I am an excellent cook!!
Hey Mindy,
Happy Wednesday!🌈 I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your comment, so glad to hear it was a winner! Lol I’ve never add chicken to this, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work for you! Or just serve it on the side:) I hope this helps! xT
This sounds delicious!! I want to make this for a potluck, but if I refrigerate it first and then bake later, how much time do you think I should I add for baking? Thanks!
Hey Amber,
I would just add about 10 minutes. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
Thank you!! It turned out SO good!
Hey Amber,
Wonderful!!😊 I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was delish! xT
So thankful for this comment/question. With two littles and a full time job, it’s easiest to pre-make everything and then warm up later in the week.
Ps: this is a family favorite (even for 2 & 1yr olds)
We’ve made this recipe a handful of times now!
It turns out delicious every time!
Next time, we are talking about omitting the spinach & artichokes, but adding lobster instead!
Hey Allison,
Happy Wednesday!! ❄️ I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xT
This was so delicious! All of the measurements worked out perfectly for me 🙂
Hey Chloe,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you and thanks so much for trying it out! xx
This recipe was delish!! I have to admit I was so nervous only adding 4 cups of water for a whole box of pasta and not draining the water. But it was perfect. I wouldn’t change a thing! My family loved it. Thanks for your great recipes.
Hey Erika,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you and appreciate you giving it a try! xT
Thank you for this comment! I was specifically scrolling down looking for a video or comment because I was nervous about this too. Happy to hear it turned out well and I will be making this today!
I made this recently for dinner at home and it was a hit! I’m trying to adjust it to cook it in my instant pot or crock pot to bring to a pot luck… any ideas other than baking and then transferring to one of those to keep hot?!
Hey Ashley,
Wonderful!!🎄 I love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review! You could just transfer to your crockpot to keep on warm:) xx
This is now my favourite Mac and Cheese recipe! It is so easy to make too and the artichoke hearts make it a little more fancy than your run of the mill M&C. I made it for the 3rd time last night for our weekly Sunday night dinner with friends and everyone loved it! I was pretty generous with the cayenne pepper and added some powdered mustard to it as well. Delicious, creamy and rich!
Hey Ingrid,
Happy Monday!! Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xT
I made this for the first time last night. Not only was it simple, but it was really yummy. I used chickpea noodles (because that’s what I had in hand) and with the spinach and artichoke it didn’t feel quite as guilty has regular Mac and cheese. The artichoke chunks gave it an interesting flavor and texture I really liked.
I cools see this being a super versatile recipe. Mushrooms would be great, sun dried tomatoes, so many things to shake up this great foundation. Thanks for another wonderful recipe!
Hey Kristen,
Happy Monday!! So glad to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks for giving it a go! xT
Is this suppose to be sharp white cheddar or regular sharp cheddar? The recipe just calls for “sharp cheddar” but the link to purchase is a white cheddar.
Hey Erika,
You can use either one:) I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xT
Regular sharp cheddar cheese is naturally white to pale yellow. Orange cheddar cheese is regular cheddar cheese to which the manufacturer has added a lot of food coloring (often annatto). There is no difference, unless you can taste an off flavor from the coloring.
We absolutely Love this recipe and your cookbook. One of the best Christmas gifts!
Hey Marilyn,
Happy Friday!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe out, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have a great weekend:)
this is the BEST! I’m going to try adding Pepper jack and poblanos next time.
Delicious!
Hey Shauna,
Happy Wednesday!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was tasty!?
Love this recipe and have made it many times.
Can this be made to the point of baking and then frozen? And baked from frozen? I would not add the cracker topping or cheddar cheese until I baked it.
Hey Doris,
Happy Wednesday!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was tasty! Totally, that will work well for you!! ?
Made it for a work potluck and it was a HUGE success!
Hi Shelly,
Happy Friday!! Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe and sharing your review. I love that it was enjoyed!! Happy 4th of July weekend!??
Made this tonight, my 19 year old foodie and I both loved it. I liked your suggestions for adapting the recipe for different tastes. Next time I think I will do the pepper jack mixed with cheddar, and I like mine a bit creamier, so, more milk. I used cavatappi instead of macaroni, since it’s my favorite pasta, and it worked beautifully in this. Thanks, TG!
Hi Jen,
Happy Friday! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback and trying this recipe out! Love to hear that it was enjoyed:) xxTieghan
Made this for a group of 8 last night….. loved by all. Everyone wanted the recipe.
Hey Kimberly,
Awesome!! I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed! Thanks for making it and sharing your feedback:) xx