This recipe is good, however I add a few of my own personal touches in order to make it better. First, I don't add nearly as much milk as stated in the recipe... this makes it more creamy and less soupy. Next I like to use 8 ounces of velveeta cheese and 8 ounces of sharp cheddar cheese instead so it gives the macaroni a little kick. Also, A great idea is to mix breadcrumbs with butter and spread them over the top of the macaroni and cheese before it goes in the oven to bake!

I didn't care for this too much. Sorry :-(

My kids love this recipe and request it often. I would add some more spice, but the kids like it just like it is.

Really didnt care for this. Maybe I am not a homemade mac n cheese lover. Did not care for the consistency at all. Nobody in our house cared for it.

My kids don't like mac n' cheese but the grownups loved it!

I don't make this A LOT, b/c it is a high calorie dish. But it is just like the kind of mac&cheese that I grew up with (my mom didn't make the box kind) SO this is what I call a "comfort food" :). We always use hot dogs not ham just our family preference. I recently made this for another family that we were staying with, and she only had colby/jack cheese. It turned out great even with just one kind of cheese. Both families loved it. Make sure you follow the directions and make the roux right. Keep in mind that it does make a lot, but it reheats wonderfully as leftovers, and even freezes/reheats well if you like to make meals in advance.

Delicious is the right word here!!! We had a huge ham for Easter which meant lots of leftovers to use up, this recipe was perfect! My few moderations are: I used a whole box of elbow macaroni (1 lb) and crushed up some french fried onions for the top, baked 30 minutes . I never made a white sauce before so I was worried it would be horrible but with these easy to follow directions it came out great, Thanks!!!

This basic recipe is a staple in our house. I make this often and its actually easy and quick once you do it a few times. DO use more pasta than is required. You really can use close to a 1lb of pasta with this amount of sauce. Make sure your roux is thick before you add the cheese. I sometimes replace a 1/2 to one cup of heavy cream in place of same amount of milk - makes it so creamy but does make it much richer. Also- pasta needs to be JUST al dente and not overcooked when you bake it. I use whatever cheese and macaroni I have on hand. My favorite is to use sharp cheddar and I sometimes add some Emeril's Essence in it for a kick when bringing to a party. For kids its great just as is. Good with cheddar cheese and bread crumbs on top as well. I made this with leftover Easter ham and my kids devoured it.

I'm on the fence with this one. Half the family liked it and half didn't. The consistency was great, but the taste was kind of bland (ended up putting on grated parmesan before eating it). I added ground mustard (1TSP) and a little more cheese (I used all shredded). I didn't add the ham. I made a topping out of shredded cheddar and panko bread crumbs and that was the best part! I will make this again, but I think it needs 2 stronger cheeses instead of 2 mild ones. I think maybe I'll try gorgonzola or Vermont Cheddar or even Velveeta in place of the Monterey Jack or Mozzerella.

This was pretty tasty!

This was pretty good. It is definitely different than "the blue box" - to be expected from homemade. Other than burning the bottom of my pot (my fault - roux sauce got away from me), it wasn't bad. Not as flavorful as I was hoping so if I make it again, I'll increase the spices.

This was really good. Just watch the baking time- 60 minutes would be way too long. I did 25 and it was perfect. I used about 12 oz. of wagon wheel pasta, havarti instead of mozz, extra sharp white cheddar, and pepper jack instead of montery jack. It was really good- I had to make myself stop taking more and more. It was a big hit with my husband, and 5-year old and one year old. My baby just kept eating it long after everyone else was done! Lol. My only complaint is that it took a long time to prepare, and dirtied more pots than the usual mac and cheese, what with the heating up of the milk (I didn't have a clean microwave safe bowl that was big enough though.) I did use the ham and really enjoyed that. Served this with green beans.

Instead of salt, I used a chicken bouillon cube. Yummy!

Made it twice to get it right; first time grainy, second perfect! Must take time to make roux. Milk must be hot, but not scalded or dish is ruined. Here is what I did for a large serving: 16 oz shell pasta, 8 tbl butter/flour, 2 qts milk, 16 oz jack/cheddar, 8 oz 5 cheese parmisian moz combo, 4 oz velveeta NO ham, Bake only 20 minutes. Roux must be made per directions, slowly, constant stir and slow add very warm/hot milk. Let thicken and then add cheese. I used Tone's cajun spice mix, 3 tsp, and 1tsp salt. It had a slight bite, but very creamy and delicious.

Made this for Thanksgiving and I got soooo many compliments. It was absolutely delicious. I did alter the recipe just a lil bit. I used 8 oz of cheese rather than 5oz. I used 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper rather than a pinch and I skipped the paprika. I will absolutely by making this again.

I followed the recipe but went along with previous users' suggestions and added worscenstershire sauce and mustard powder. I used the cheeses I had on hand. I added more cheese than the recipe called for and still it wasn't cheesy enough. This came out more like a macaroni casserol than a mac and cheese. I probably won't be making this recipe again.

OK, so hubby informs me yesterday morning that a pre-Thanksgiving meal is to take place at his office today and that he is expected to bring something. With too many desserts already on the list, he is convinced a side dish is in order. After making several suggestions (none of which he liked) I finally asked, "What about homemade Mac & Cheese"? Now, I should mention at this point that I have always been known as someone who cooks everything fast and on HIGH...not to mention the fact that the only Macaroni and cheese I had EVER made came in a blue box. BUT...I figured, "How hard can it be"? Well...thankfully, I found this site and this recipe!!! I had purchased everything we needed and was ready to cook when hubby got home from work last night...and, for what its worth, we actually had a blast! Who knew cooking could be so much fun?? AND...here's the real kicker! Hubby called today after the dinner had ended; two different people told him it was the best mac & cheese they had ever eaten!!! So...he comes home tonight, bringing what was left...approximately the equivalent of 2 large serving spoons full and THAT WAS IT!!! (Oh, and did I mention we TRIPLED the recipe??) Anyway...absolutely amazing!! I will definitely make it again! I did take the advice of a couple of people who posted reviews and we, too, left out the ham. Also, we used shredded cheese, rather than cubed and half & half rather than milk. No more blue box for me!!! I'm a convert!

Ok this was alright. I think I messed something up though. Next time I will leave out the ham and use much less flour. I am not sure if it was my fault or if it was the recipe (probably me though);) . And it wasn't terrible. Was kind of bland though. I will give this an honest try again and report back! Oh and my two year old son loved it!!

My two very NON-picky kids wouldn't touch it. I took a bite and it was spongy and not nearly cheesy enough. I followed the recipe exactly except I sprinkled extra cheese on top (that was the best part) It's just not for us at all!

Thia recipe was fantastic and everyone who tried it, loved it. I also added the mustard and bread crumbs etc. It was delicious. The reason it gets a 4 instead of 5 rating is because it definitely takes about 45 mintues to prepare and only needs about 25 minutes to cook and 3 mintues to broil and make the breadcrumbs crispy.