Sheet Pan Mac and Cheese
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Crowd-pleasing mac and cheese on a sheet pan! Perfectly cheesy and creamy with the maximum amount of crunchy bits. MIND BLOWN.
Featured Comment
No one could sit still the day that we were shooting and testing this recipe. NOPE. We all sat there, hoping to get this shot in 10 seconds. That way, we could all grab a fork and immediately dive right in.
Which is exactly what we did. We shot it. We ate it. We ate some more of it. And no one exchanged a single word until we were basically finished with 90% of the sheet pan.
With a combination of being perfectly cheesy, perfectly creamy, and perfectly crispy in every single bite, no one needs to be talking.
The best part about all this? There is no fiddle, no fuss. This comes together fast and quick with minimal clean up, making this a true weeknight hero.
Tools For This Recipe
Baking sheet
Sheet Pan Mac and Cheese: Frequently Asked Questions
All out of elbow macaroni? Cavatappi or fusilli are great substitutes here.
Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) has one of the highest fat contents with about 36-40% fat. Half and half or whole milk are suitable substitutes, but will yield a lighter result.
Panko is a Japanese-style breadcrumb and can be found in the Asian section of your local grocery store. While both panko and breadcrumbs can be used as a coating for fried foods, panko is much more flakier and yields a crunchier, crispier texture.
Sheet Pan Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 pound large elbow macaroni
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium shallot, minced
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 4 ½ cups shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 1 cup Panko*
Instructions
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.
- Preheat oven to broil on high. Arrange an oven rack 6-inches from the broiler. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat with nonstick spray.
- Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and shallot, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Whisk in flour and paprika until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk, heavy cream and Dijon until slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk as needed; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Remove from heat. Stir in 2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, Parmesan and pasta until well combined; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- In a small bowl, combine Panko and remaining 2 cups cheddar cheese.
- Spread pasta mixture into the prepared sheet pan; sprinkle with Panko mixture.
- Place into oven and broil, rotating the sheet pan a few times, until golden brown and crispy, about 5-6 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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Good morning! I have a question. My husband and children are not fond of sharp cheddar in the least. Do you think it would be okay to substitute mild cheddar instead? Thank you!
Hi there, this looks delicious
Hoping to make this for my food truck- just wanted to clarify, this doesn’t get baked at all, it just gets broiled on the top?
Any help would be appreciated !
This is 1000/10. So good. Delicious. Scrumptious. Went back for seconds. My husband, 3.5 year old, and 1 year old all heartily approved as well. Make this, you won’t regret it.
Exceeds expectations!
Delicious! A few nights ago, I told my oldest daughter I was going to make this for dinner and she gave me a huge hug and thanked me in advance. I didn’t even have whole milk or heavy cream (just subbed 2% milk for all of it) and it still came out great as usual. I add chopped fresh chives before serving if I have some on hand. It’s worth mentioning that the rest of the fam loves it too. Thanks for another winner!
Very nice Mac n cheese which paired great with hot sauce and white wine ! I def should have drained the pasta well (I didn’t) which resulted in a ‘wet’ sauce. My spouse really enjoyed it and we’ll be making it again.
Hands down the best Mac and cheese I’ve ever had, and I’m a huge Mac and cheese fan. Thank you so much for this. Wow. I accidentally used too much milk and thought it might come out too liquid-y, but I added extra cheese – which you can’t go wrong with anyways – and it totally saved the recipe.
This was delicious and the textbook example of a delicious homemade mac and cheese. I didn’t do it on a sheetpan, however, I did it in a regular baking dish. Worked fine!
I have made quite a few mac and cheese recipes using a variety of different ingredients and techniques and this is the best!
The crisp with the creamy is spot on.
This is the Mac and cheese to rule all Mac and cheese !
Looks great and from all those positive reviews I can’t wait to try it.
I want to make this a ahead of time and was wondering if I might need to bake it for a little while before turning on the broiler.
So, so good. My husband who is usually not a big mac and cheese fan gobbled this up. I even caught him grabbing a few extra bites off the sheet pan as we were cleaning up after dinner. Totally easy and damn delicious!
Best mac n cheese I have ever made. It was amazing and damn delicious. This will be my go to mac n cheese – so good.
Excited to make this, but need to do it ahead of time. Will it be okay ? Thanks for the recipe, can’t wait !
Excellent….I made this with cashew milk and fat free half and half (because that’s what I had in my refrigerator.) So delicious and comforting. The addition of shallot and garlic to Mac and cheese really took the flavor to a new level.
Did you use 2 cups cashew milk and 1 cup half and half?
I made this for Thanksgiving and I got RAVE REVIEWS! Everyone loved it! I couldn’t try it because I chose not to make it gluten free, but the other 10 people at my table were very happy and fighting over the leftovers 🙂
I made this tonight and realized that there is no other macaroni and cheese that can top this one–it will be my go-to recipe! The crispy top is insanely good.
Question: looking to try this recipe for a work potluck this week. Can it be done in a baking dish as opposed to sheet pan?
Yes, of course, but you may end up with a thicker layer and less crispy edges!
Delicious! Great leftovers too!
This recipe was really good. I love that your sheet pan looks as bad as mine! Ha!Ha!