The most comforting and cozy soup of all time, perhaps. This is just like a delicious and creamy mac and cheese, but turned into soup!
Macaroni and Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp Salted butter
- ½ tsp Garlic powder
- ½ tsp Onion powder
- ¼ tsp Smoked paprika
- Pinch of Cayenne
- 3 tbsp All-purpose flour
- 1 12 oz can Evaporated milk
- 4 cups Chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 ½ cups Elbow macaroni pasta
- 2 slices American cheese
- 2 ½ cups Sharp orange cheddar grated on the largest holes of a box grater
- ¾ cup Gruyère cheese grated on the largest holes of a box grater
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large pot or dutch oven, melt 3 tbsp salted butter over medium heat. Once melted, add ½ tsp garlic powder, ½ tsp onion powder, ¼ tsp smoked paprika, and a pinch of cayenne pepper. Use a silicone spatula or whisk to stir the spices into the butter for about 1 minute until very fragrant.
- Add 3 tbsp flour to the spiced melted butter and immediately stir until fully combined into a paste. Continue cooking and stirring this for about 1-2 minutes to cook the flour fully. Then, gradually pour in 1 can of evaporated milk while stirring simultaneously. Continue stirring or whisking until fully combined and there are no more lumps in the sauce. Whisk in 4 cups of chicken or vegetable stock.
- Bring the contents of the pot to a gentle boil, then add 1½ cups elbow macaroni and stir to combine. Cook this over a simmer while stirring frequently to prevent the noodles from sticking to the pot. Once the noodles are cooked about 90% of the way through, remove the pot from the heat source.
- Stir in 2 slices of American cheese until it is fully melted. Once that is melted, gradually stir in 2½ cups of shredded cheddar cheese until fully combined. Then, gradually stir in ¾ cup of shredded Gruyere cheese. Once all the cheese is fully melted and combined with the soup, add 1 tsp Dijon mustard and a few pinches of kosher salt along with some cracked black pepper to your liking. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- Serve the soup in bowls and garnish with sliced fresh chives and a bit more black pepper.
