Crockpot Mac and Cheese

I love to macaroni and cheese. It's one of the many comfort foods that I learned to make first with the simple Kraft box. I also love to make simple recipes that doesn't require too much cooking from my part. That's why Crock-pot dishes are sooo easy because it doesn't require any work at all!

Now this recipe is what I have done a couple of times for parties or just on my own. Keep in mind that that this maybe a large amount of macaroni, but I am making a large batch for a party.

Ingredients:

1 whole onion, diced
8 tbsp butter (1 stick of butter)
1 lb 8 oz bag of elbow macaroni
2 cups whole milk
2 tbsp mayonnaise (Duke's preferably)
2 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp sea salt
1 tbsp paprika
1 cup diced Velveeta
1 cup shredded mild cheddar
1/2 cup shredded Monterrey jack
1/2 cup shredded Gouda
salt and pepper to taste
additional milk or half&half (if necessary)

First, start off with sauteing the onions. Using a medium sized skillet, place the 2 tbsp of butter allowing it to melt. Add the diced onions and cook until they are caramelized. Once cooked, take off the heat and allow to cool.

Start the crock-pot at the highest setting. This helps the crock-pot to warm up. Now you are ready to add the ingredients to the crock-pot. Notice that I am using my large crock-pot. Start first by adding the milk and the butter. I am just adding the stick of butter, but if you want you can pre-cut the butter.

After you have added the milk and butter, you can add the spices. Stir the mixture.

Add the macaroni to the mixture. One of the last things that you need to add is the mayonnaise. I found Duke's mayo is the best, but whichever mayo you like to use should be sufficient.

Stir the whole mixture up to make sure that the noodles aren't getting stuck. Shred all the cheese and add to the macaroni. Also, add the caramelized onions to the pot. 

Bring the heat down to a medium. Remember to stir it so everything is mixed well. Cover the mixture with the lid. Every hour, stir the mixture making sure that the macaroni pasta doesn't get stuck together.

After about 2 hours, you will notice that the pasta is starting to get close to al dente. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. For me, the cheeses are salty enough that you don't need to add salt, but again, everyone is different. You might also notice that there needs to be more liquid. Add milk or half & half to the mixture. 

Check every 15 to 30 minutes to see if the macaroni is done to your liking. This is great with whatever you plan to eat with main dish that is. Also, I have found that macaroni does keep well frozen. When you freeze it, make sure it is sealed well. Once you take it out of the freezer, you need to let it defrost slowly. You can then reheat in a pot, add additional liquid and let it get it to cheesy, bubbly goodness.