Bacon Mac and Cheese with Rosemary

A quick and easy stovetop mac and cheese with bacon, rosemary, and white cheddar.

📝 Ingredients

• 3/4 pound pasta (we used cavatappi noodles)
• 4 strips thick-cut bacon, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves removed and roughly chopped (about 3 Tablespoons)
• 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• kosher salt and pepper to taste
• 2 1/2 cups shredded white cheddar cheese

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Cook the pasta: ---
2. 2Cook pasta in a large pot filled with very salty water until al dente. Drain and set aside.
3. 3Return pot to stove over medium heat. Add diced bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until crispy.
4. 4Use a slotted spoon to remove bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Leave the bacon fat in the pot: This will be the fat that we use to build our roux! You want about 3 Tablespoons of bacon fat left in the pot; if you have quite a bit more than this, feel free to spoon a bit out.
5. 5--- Build the sauce: ---
6. 6Add garlic and rosemary to the pot with your bacon fat. The bacon fat will be quite hot: keep an eye on the garlic and stir frequently to ensure it doesn't burn (you can reduce the heat or turn it off entirely for a minute if you need to). Cook until garlic has softened and rosemary is fragrant, about one minute.
7. 7Add flour to pot and stir to form a paste. (This is our roux, which will help the sauce thicken. Don't worry if the bacon fat foams up a bit or looks different than a traditional flour-and-butter roux here!)
8. 8Whisk milk into roux a little at a time, whisking constantly to work out any flour lumps. Whisk in a pinch of salt and some fresh cracked black pepper.
9. 9Bring sauce to a low simmer and cook, stirring frequently, for 6-10 minutes until it thickens.
10. 10Remove pot from heat and stir in shredded cheese. Stir until cheese has melted.
11. 11Add cooked pasta to sauce and stir to combine. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Top with crispy bacon and serve immediately.