The best herby mac n cheese is creamy, cheesy, and packed with fresh herbs that add just the right amount of flavor to this classic, comforting dish. The combination of rich cheese and fragrant herbs makes this mac n cheese feel a little more special without making it feel complicated. It’s an easy side dish or cozy dinner that comes together with simple ingredients.
Why You’ll Love This Mac N Cheese
Quick & Easy – Sometimes making something from scratch can feel intimidating, but with simple ingredients and a box of pasta, you can’t go wrong with this one.
One Pot Meal – The best meals use the least amount of dishes in my opinion. This herby mac n cheese can be made in one pot which makes clean up a breeze.
Simple Ingredients – A lot of the ingredients in this recipe are probably already in your kitchen. No last minute trips to the grocery store for this one.
Tips
- Once you add the cream, let it reduce a little bit before adding the cheese. I’ve found that doing this makes things a bit easier on the stomach.
- After adding the cheese, the sauce will start to look thicker. Add milk a little at a time until you get the desired consistency for your mac n cheese sauce. By adding milk instead of more cream, this also helps the dish feel lighter.
- Using fresh herbs in this mac n cheese was a game changer, but if you only have dried herbs, it’ll still work for this dish.
Herby Mac N Cheese FAQ
If your mac n cheese is dry after adding the cheese sauce, it might be because your pasta absorbed all the sauce. Make sure your pasta is cooked al dante and then add the cheese sauce. Let everything simmer for about 3 minutes. The pasta will still cook a little bit even after you’re done boiling it. No need to worry about eating undercooked pasta.
Sauces usually turn grainy when the cheese or cream get too hot in the pan. I would take the sauce off the heat, let it cool down, and put it through a blender to make it smooth again.
You may have added too much milk to the sauce. To thicken it up, you can always add more heavy cream or cheese.
Tools You May Need
Sauteé pan – If you wanted to make the sauce while cooking the pasta you could.
Immersion blender/regular blender – To blend the onions into the sauce and make it smooth.
Garlic press (optional) – you can use a knife to finely dice your garlic if you don’t have a press.
Tea towel – This is optional, but you can use this to place over the pasta once you strain it. This will keep the pasta warm while you make the cheese sauce.
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Mac N Cheese Ingredients
Here’s everything you need to make the best herby mac n cheese.
Pasta – I used bowtie, but feel free to use your favorite.
Onion
Butter
Garlic cloves
Cream
Basil
Rosemary
Parsley
Gruyere cheese
Cheddar cheese
Milk – As needed
Salt and pepper to taste
Mac N Cheese Add-In Ideas
Veggies – I love adding broccoli or a frozen bag of corn, peas, and carrots.
Hotdogs – Perfect kid approved addition
Ground beef – For a quick hamburger helper recipe
Shredded chicken or ground turkey – Great lean protein sources.
How to Make Herby Mac N Cheese
Chop your basil and rosemary, and shred the cheese ahead of time. Once you start making the sauce, things will start to move quickly.
Fill a medium pot with water about half way and bring it to a boil.
Once the water is boiling, lower the heat a bit and add your pasta. Make sure you add a generous amount of salt to your pasta water for flavor, and to prevent the water from boiling over.
Once the pasta is al dente, set aside about 1/4 cup of pasta water. You’re going to add that to the sauce later. Drain the rest, and set the pasta aside with a tea towel over it. This will keep the pasta warm while you make the sauce.
Dice up a quarter of an onion and toss into the same large pot you cooked the pasta in. Add butter (1 tbsp) to the pot and cook the onions until they’re fragrant.
When the onions are translucent, add in the cream (1 cup), herbs (6 basil leaves, 2 rosemary springs), minced garlic (2 cloves), and salt and pepper.
Lower the heat a bit. When the cream starts to simmer, stir for about 5 minutes.
Use the emersion blender to blend the onions into the sauce. This helps make everything smooth.
Stir in the gruyere and cheddar cheese to the pot. The sauce will start to become very thick as the cheese melts. Stir in a little bit of milk at a time until you have your desired consistency.
After the cheese has melted add in the pasta water. This will help the sauce stick to the pasta.
Toss the pasta into the creamy sauce until all of it is coated evenly.
And there you have it! Creamy, delicious, herby mac n cheese.
Storage
You can store this mac n cheese in an air tight container in the refrigerator or about 4 days. I do not recommend freezing this dish.
Herby Mac N Cheese
Equipment
- Cutting board
- Large knife
- Large pot
- Large pan (optional)
- Immersion blender/regular blender
- Strainer
- Garlic press
- Tea towel
Ingredients
- ½ bag pasta
- ¼ onion
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 6 basil leaves
- 2 rosemary springs
- 1/2 tsp parsley
- 1 cup gruyere cheese
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup milk (add as needed)
- 1 tsp Salt and pepper (each)
Instructions
- Chop your basil and rosemary, and shred the cheese ahead of time. Once you start making the sauce, things will start to move quickly.
- Fill a medium pot with water about half way and bring it to a boil.
- Once the water is boiling, lower the heat a bit and add your pasta. Make sure you add a generous amount of salt to your pasta water for flavor, and to prevent the water from boiling over.
- Once the pasta is al dente, set aside about 1/4 cup of pasta water. You’re going to add that to the sauce later. Drain the rest, and set the pasta aside with a tea towel over it. This will keep the pasta warm while you make the sauce.
- Dice up a quarter of an onion and toss into the same large pot you cooked the pasta in. Add butter (1 tbsp) to the pot and cook the onions until they’re fragrant.
- When the onions are translucent, add in the cream (1 cup), herbs (6 basil leaves, 2 rosemary springs), minced garlic (2 cloves), and salt and pepper.
- Lower the heat a bit. When the cream starts to simmer, stir for about 5 minutes.
- Use the emersion blender to blend the onions into the sauce. This helps make everything smooth.
- Stir in the gruyere and cheddar cheese to the pot. The sauce will start to become very thick as the cheese melts. Stir in a little bit of milk at a time until you have your desired consistency.
- After the cheese has melted add in the pasta water. This will help the sauce stick to the pasta.
- Toss the pasta into the creamy sauce until all of it is coated evenly.
- And there you have it! Creamy, delicious, herby mac n cheese.
Notes
Storage
You can store this mac n cheese in an air tight container in the refrigerator or about 4 days.Quick Tips
If you don’t have multiple cheeses you can stick to just cheddar. Let the cream simmer for a little bit so the dish isn’t so heavy. If you don’t have an emersion blender, you can chop up the onions very finely with a knife or opt for onion powder.If you try out this Herby Mac N Cheese, please rate it and leave a comment below. This helps other readers decide if this is a great recipe to make. Also, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @goldenhourgrains so I can see what you’re making!
More Recipes to Try:
Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
How to Make the Best Spicy White Bean Dip
Blueberry Feta Salad with Oven Roasted Chicken
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