How To Make Boxed Mac & Cheese Taste Homemade With 2 Ingredients

Coming home from work, taking a box from the cabinet, pouring its contents into a pot on the stove, and serving your family steaming hot bowls of macaroni and cheese in less than 15 minutes can feel satisfying, but you might also wish it tasted a little more like homemade. Joanne Gallagher, recipe creator and co-founder of Inspired Taste, knows how to change all that. The trick is she's not afraid to add a few ingredients to make the boxed version taste like she started from scratch. The secrets: real cheese and a splash of heavy cream.

The two ingredients, Gallagher told Food Republic exclusively, intensify the flavor, create a thick, satiny sauce, and give you a made-from-scratch taste and texture. "I found that real cheese brings depth and richness. At the same time, heavy cream creates a silkier mouthfeel than the standard box mix." Why use heavy cream versus milk or butter? She explained that heavy cream has a much higher fat content than milk or butter, resulting in a richer, thicker, and smoother sauce. "It coats the pasta with a luxurious texture and prevents the sauce from feeling watery or thin," Gallagher noted. Even with that extra silkiness, keep in mind that over-stirring can ruin the texture of mac and cheese

Even the least expensive boxes of mac and cheese contain at least some real cheese, but for true cheesy flavor, Joanne Gallagher likes to add some of her own. But, for creaminess and complexity, her favorites include sharp cheddar, Monterey Jack, Gouda, fontina, or Gruyère. "Using at least one cheese that melts well, such as fontina or Monterey Jack, ensures a stretchier, creamier sauce," she explained. "I love a blend for both flavor and texture." For the smoothest, best-tasting results, she suggested grating the cheese.

Other ways to upgrade boxed macaroni and cheese include adding vegetables, like spinach, artichokes, or tomatoes; flavoring it with additional herbs and spices like garlic, mustard powder, or onion powder; and giving it a hot take with chili, habaneros, or even Buffalo sauce. Of course, you also want to start out with a good boxed mac and cheese, and at the top of Food Republic's list of the best and worst boxed mac and cheese were Cracker Barrel's Sharp Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese, Annie's Deluxe Shells & Aged Cheddar, and Private Selection's Wisconsin Five Cheese Blend Macaroni & Cheese.