If there is one dish that disappears fastest at a summer cookout (or winter dinner table!), it is macaroni and cheese. Not the pale, watery kind, but the kind with a genuinely creamy sauce clinging to each piece of spiral pasta and finished with a golden, buttery crunchy topping across the top. This Creamy Cheddar & Gruyère Macaroni & Cheese is that dish, and it has become my most-requested BBQ side.
The flavor magic here comes from the cheese pairing. Sharp orange cheddar brings that unmistakable tang and the nostalgic orangey color we all want in a mac and cheese. Gruyère brings something cheddar can’t do on its own: a nutty, faintly sweet depth that melts into the sauce like smooth silk. Together they taste like the mac and cheese you remember, just grown up.
And instead of breadcrumbs, I like to finish this baked pasta dish with crushed cornflakes tossed in melted butter. It bakes into a shattering, salty-sweet crust that stays crisp for far longer than regular or panko breadcrumbs. It’s the detail people always talk about!
Jump to RecipeWhy You’ll Love This Recipe
- It feeds a crowd. Ten to twelve generous servings from one baking dish! It’s the perfect choice for potlucks, holiday dinners, and backyard barbecues.
- It’s genuinely make-ahead. Assemble it up to two days in advance, and bake it the day of.
- The sauce never breaks. A classic béchamel base means the cheese melts into a stable, glossy sauce instead of turning grainy or worse, oily.
- That cornflake topping. Crunchy, buttery, and just impossible to stop nibbling once baked!
- No cream needed. Whole milk plus a proper roux (flour +butter, cooked) does all of the work.
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
- The pasta Cellentani (also sold as cavatappi) is my pick. These hollow corkscrews trap all of that creamy sauce inside and along the ridges, so every bite is completely coated. If you can’t find it, fusilli, medium shells, or classic elbow macaroni all work as alternatives. Cook it just to package directions, as it will soften slightly more in the oven.
- The cheeses Use 12 ounces Gruyère and 8 ounces orange cheddar, and shred them yourself. Pre-shredded cheese is coated in potato starch or cellulose to prevent clumping, and that coating is the single most common reason a mac and cheese sauce turns gritty.
- Gruyère substitutions: Gruyère is pricier and sometimes lives at the cheese counter rather than the dairy case. Comté, Emmental, Jarlsberg, Fontina, Raclette, or a good Dubliner will all give you a similar nutty melt.
- Cheddar substitutions: Sharp white cheddar works beautifully if you don’t mind losing the orange color. But, my favorite swap? I LOVE using a Smoked Cheddar! This simple one-to-one switch adds a lovely soft smoky flavor to the cheese sauce and my family can’t get enough!
- The dairy Whole Milk is what you want. Lower-fat milk makes a thinner, less satisfying sauce. Let it come closer to room temperature before adding it to the roux if you can, as cold milk hitting the hot roux can create pesky lumps in your sauce.
- The aromatics shallots and garlic are what set this apart from a standard baked mac. Shallots have a gentler onion-esque flavor, and cook down quickly. They season the sauce without shouting about it! Cook them just until softened and fragrant, but make sure they don’t pick up any color.
- That small amount of ground mustard (half a teaspoon) may not sound like much, but ground mustard is the secret weapon in most cheese sauces. It doesn’t read as “mustard” per se; it works by sharpening the cheese flavor and cutting the richness of the sauce just a bit. Don’t skip it. In a pinch, a teaspoon of Dijon mustard also works.
- The topping of crushed Cornflakes tossed with melted butter, is the unsug hero of this recipe. Panko, Ritz crackers, or even crushed butter crackers are all suitable swaps, but cornflakes give you the crispiest and most delicious crust.
How to Make Cheddar & Gruyère Mac and Cheese
Step 1: Cook the pasta.
Boil the cellentani according to package directions, about 11 minutes. Drain and set aside. Don’t rinse it — that starchy surface helps the sauce cling.
Step 2: Build the roux
Mince the shallots and garlic. In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, melt the stick of butter until foamy, being careful not to let it brown. Add the shallot and garlic and cook, stirring, until softened and fragrant. Whisk in the flour and cook until it turns slightly golden and smells nutty — this cooks out the raw flour taste.
Step 3: Make the béchamel
Slowly pour in the milk while whisking constantly, breaking up any clumps as you go. Keep whisking over heat until the sauce thickens and just reaches a low boil. It should coat the back of a spoon.
Step 4: Add the cheese
This is the part that matters most. Add the shredded cheeses in batches, whisking until each addition is fully melted before adding more. Dumping it all in at once drops the sauce temperature and causes it to seize. Once the cheese is melted and smooth, stir in the ground mustard and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Step 5: Combine and top
Add the drained pasta to the cheese sauce and stir to coat completely. Pour into a large baking dish. Crush the cornflakes with your hands in a small bowl, stir in the melted butter, and sprinkle evenly over the top.
Step 6: Bake
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake on the middle rack for 30 minutes, until bubbling around the edges and golden on top. Rest on a wire rack for 5 minutes before serving — this lets the sauce set just enough to scoop cleanly.
Recipe Tips for the Creamiest Mac and Cheese
- Shred your own cheese. This is worth repeating. It’s truly the difference between a silky sauce, and sandy mess.
- Take the pot off direct high heat when adding cheese. Cheese sauces tend to break when they get too hot. Medium-low heat is your best friend.
- Season at the end. Both the cheddar and Gruyère are salty by nature, and salted butter adds even more. Taste the sauce before adding any additional salt.
- Use a deeper baking dish rather than a shallow one. Deep dishes hold moisture; shallow lasagna pans can dry the mac out.
- If your sauce looks too thick before baking, it likely is. The pasta absorbs liquid in the oven. Loosen it with a splash of warm milk so it bakes up creamy, but not stiff.
Make Ahead, Storage & Reheating
To make ahead: Assemble the mac and cheese completely, including the cornflake topping, cover tightly, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Bake straight from the fridge, but add about 10 minutes to the bake time.
To freeze: Assemble without the topping, wrap well, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, add the buttered cornflakes, and bake as directed.
To store leftovers: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
To reheat: Add a splash of milk to individual portions and warm gently, covered in a 325°F oven for about 20 minutes, or in the microwave in short bursts (stirring between). The milk brings the sauce back to that creamy goodness from the first serving.
What to Serve with It
This is a BBQ side dish first and foremost. It’s magnificent next to smoked brisket, grilled chicken thighs, or ribs. Balance the richness with something bright and acidic, like a vinegary tomato and goat cheese salad, a tomato and peach panzanella bread salad, quick pickles, or grilled corn with lime. It’s also a natural on a holiday table alongside a beef tenderloin or roasted turkey.
Recipe Variations
- Bacon mac and cheese: fold in 6 slices of cooked, crumbled bacon before baking.
- Spicy: add diced jalapeños or a pinch of cayenne to the sauce.
- Lobster or crab mac: fold in cooked seafood just before it goes into the baking dish.
- Extra sharp: swap 4 ounces of the cheddar for aged white cheddar or add a handful of grated Parmesan to the topping.
- Stovetop version: skip the cornflakes and the oven entirely and serve straight from the pot.
Frequently Asked Questions
What cheese goes best with Gruyère in mac and cheese? Sharp cheddar is the ideal partner. Gruyère is a slow, nutty background cheese, so it needs a brighter, tangier cheese up front to open up the flavor. Cheddar does exactly that, which is why this cheddar and Gruyère combination works so well.
Yes. Comté, Emmental, Jarlsberg, Fontina, Raclette, or Dubliner are the closest matches in both melt and nutty flavor. Swiss cheese will work in a pinch, though it’s milder.
Almost always one of two causes: pre-shredded cheese (the anti-caking starch doesn’t melt smoothly) or too much heat. Shred cheese from the block and add it off high heat, in batches, whisking between each.
Absolutely. Assemble it completely up to 3 days ahead, refrigerate covered, and bake straight from cold with about 10 extra minutes.
Short shapes with ridges or hollows. Cellentani and cavatappi are my favorites because they trap sauce inside and out. Elbows, shells, fusilli, and penne all work well too.
Creamy Cheddar & Gruyère Macaroni & Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 box 1 pound cellentani pasta
- 1 stick salted butter
- 2 large shallots minced
- 2 –3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 12 ounces Gruyère shredded
- 8 ounces orange cheddar shredded
- 1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
- For the topping:
- 1 cup cornflakes crushed
- 2 tablespoons salted butter melted
Instructions
- Boil the pasta according to package directions, about 11 minutes. Drain and reserve.
- Mince the shallots and garlic. Reserve.
- Place a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the stick of butter and melt until foamy — do not let it brown.
- Add the shallot and garlic. Stir and cook until slightly softened and fragrant.
- Add the flour and whisk to combine, making a roux. Cook until the flour turns slightly golden and smells nutty.
- Slowly add the milk while whisking constantly to break up any clumps.
- Continue whisking over heat until the sauce thickens and comes to a low boil.
- Add the shredded cheeses in batches, whisking between each addition until smooth and creamy.
- Once the cheese has melted, stir in the ground mustard and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the pasta to the cheese sauce and stir to combine. Pour into a large baking dish.
- Crush the cornflakes in a small bowl, stir in the melted butter, and sprinkle evenly over the macaroni.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake on the middle rack for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and rest on a wire cooling rack for 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
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