REAL Italian Mac and Cheese

Close up of cross section of baked mac and cheese

5 from 2 votes

A combination of your favorite Italian cheese to make the best Italian mac and cheese. Provolone, mozzarella, parmesan, and fontina with pancetta and parsley.

Prep Time15

Cook Time45

Total Time1

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Italian

Servings: servings

Calories: 885kcal

Author: Vincent DelGiudice

Cost: $25

Equipment

1 large saucepan
1 large pyrex dish

Ingredients

12 oz macaroni elbows
8 oz mozzarella
8 oz fontina
6 6 oz provolone
1 cup parmesan
2 cup whole milk
6 tablespoon butter
6 tablespoon flour
⅓ lb pancetta, chopped
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
¾ cup seasoned breadcrumbs

Instructions

Fry chopped pancetta starting in a cold pan heating to medium heat until golden brown and crispy. Remove from pan and set aside. Remove the oil from the pan.
In a large pot, bring water to a boil and boil pasta until al dente. Strain and set aside. Preferably do this while you are making cheese mixture so that the pasta will stay hot.
Bring a pan to medium heat and add butter. Melt butter and stir until the foaming stops. Once the foaming stops, sprinkle in the flour while stirring. Stir until the flour is completely incorporated. Pour in milk and whisk well. Bring to a low simmer. Preheat the oven to 400°.
Add all of the cheese in slowly stirring with the milk until completely melted. Save half of the parmesan. It will be very stringy. Stir in half the pancetta. Then add in macaroni and mix well.
Transfer to a Pyrex dish and top with breadcrumbs, parmesan, and the rest of the pancetta. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes and then garnish with parsley.

Notes

1. I like to make sure my pasta finishes boiling after my cheese is nice and melty and ready for the pasta. The pasta should be nice and hot when you mix it in with the cheese.
2. Pancetta should always be cooked from a cold pan to a hot one. Adding it to a hot pan will result in uneven rendering of the fat and burnt meat.

Nutrition