The recipe I’m going to be sharing with you in this article is inspired by the recipe Gladys Knight uses for her mac and cheese! If you’re unaware of who Gladys Knight is, here’s a very quick background: she’s considered one the most iconic singers of the 50s and 60s. With that, she’s also been dubbed the “Empress of Soul.”
While everyone knows her for her music, she also happened to take up cooking on the side. That leads us to this copycat recipe I’m going to be sharing with you.
While everyone has their own spin on mac and cheese, I’m sure everyone is going to like this spin on the famous side dish.
With that being said, I won’t keep you any longer! Let’s get into Gladys Knight Mac and Cheese Recipe.
How to Make Gladys Knight’s Mac and Cheese at Home
Ingredients:
For this recipe, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- 3 cups uncooked macaroni
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1½ cups milk
- 1 cup Colby & Monterey jack cheese (shredded)
- 8 oz Velveeta (shredded)
- 1 cup smoked cheddar cheese (shredded)
- Paprika (optional)
- 1 cup cheddar cheese (shredded)
- Salt and pepper
Instructions:
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. This makes it so the pan can go straight into the oven when we’re done.
Step 2: In your saucepan of choice, bring water to a boil. Then, pour in the macaroni and let it cook. It is also important to note here that you’re going to cook the macaroni until it’s al dente (firm to the bite) or close enough to it.
Step 3: Once the macaroni is finished cooking, turn off the burner and drain the macaroni using your method of choice. After draining, then set the saucepan with the macaroni back on the burner.
Step 4: Into your favorite mixing bowl, pour the heavy cream, milk, and cheeses. It’s important to note that you need to exclude the smoked cheddar cheese, as you’ll be adding this later. Do not include the salt and pepper either, as that is also added later.
Step 5: Once you have all the ingredients in the mixing bowl, stir thoroughly until all the ingredients are combined.
Step 6: When you’ve finished mixing all of the ingredients in the bowl, add the salt and pepper. It’s important to note that with the salt and pepper, you need to adjust the amount to your desired taste. When you have the desired amount of salt and pepper for the cheese mixture, then add in the eggs and stir the mixture well. Once this is done, get out a 9×9 pan. Spray the pan with cooking oil.
Step 7: Once you have sprayed the pan with the cooking oil, pour the macaroni and the cheese sauce into the pan, and mix everything, making sure you mix it gently. When everything is mixed, top off the macaroni with the smoked cheddar cheese.
Step 8: By the time you’re done preparing the macaroni and the cheese sauce, the oven should have reached the 375-degree temperature. If it’s at temperature, then go ahead and put the macaroni and cheese in the oven and set a timer for 35–45 minutes.
Step 9: Once the timer is up, take out the macaroni and cheese, set it on the counter, out of the way of anything else you’re planning to make, and let it cool for 15 minutes or until the macaroni and cheese is set.
Step 10: Serve the mac and cheese and enjoy!
Additional Notes
Before I finish up, there are some notes I would like to make about this recipe:
- Absolutely do not, under any circ*mstances, overcook the macaroni. While I’m sure you know this already, it’s a tip that’s very much worth remembering.
- For your desired macaroni texture, cook the macaroni using the instructions on the box for the best results.
- You can either buy already shredded cheese or shred the cheese yourself using a grater.
You could easily serve this macaroni and cheese with so many other foods! It can be served with meats such as steak, oven-roasted chicken, or pork chops. This dish is best paired with vegetables, like broccoli. It’s also said that it’s best served with Southern-style biscuits.
It makes for a great summer gathering dish! You could make the mac and cheese along with any of the foods I have just mentioned, and I’m sure it’s going to be a big hit! It may end up being the talk of the party, and people might even ask you for the recipe!
Conclusion
Now that you know how to make Gladys Knight’s Mac and Cheese, go ahead and have fun with it! It also makes for an excellent side for the family dinner!
Like I mentioned earlier, you could pair this dish with so many foods, which I think is a plus! You can choose to have an all-Southern-style meal or have it with anything else you may want! Another plus is it also happens to be part of a healthy dish!
While this is probably a given, I hope you and anyone else you’re serving this to enjoys this delicious dish!
