Homemade Baked Mac n' Cheese

Growing up, I sure loved that blue box of mac and cheese but now I've grown an appreciation for foods that are made from scratch and not packed full of  fake powders and ingredients (even if they are yummy!). One of my favorite recipes from my mom is for her homemade baked mac n' cheese. I've altered it a bit to include reduced fat options, but it still tastes amazing and I even got two thumbs up from my brother when I made it for dinner while he was visiting.

Ingredients:

1 lb. of elbow macaroni
1 quart of milk (I use skim milk)
1 stick of butter (I cut off a few tbsp. instead of using the whole stick)
6 tbsp. of flour
1/2 tsp. of pepper
1/2 tsp. of slat
1/2 tsp. of onion powder
1/4 tsp. of dry mustard
1 bag of shredded sharp cheddar cheese (I use reduced fat)
1 bag of shredded mild cheddar cheese (I use reduced fat)
4 tbsp. of bread crumbs
1/4 cup of parm cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Cook macaroni for 9 minutes in boiling water
Heat milk in microwave on high for 5 minutes
In a large pan, melt butter and mix in flour
Then stir in pepper, salt, onion powder, and dry mustard. *Don't let the butter get too brown*
Pour in milk using a whisk, bring it to a boil but be careful not to scourge it.
Stir in one bag of shredded cheese and take it off the heat.
Add cooked macaroni and then stir in 1/2 of the other bag of cheese and mix.
Pour everything into a greased 9x13 pan and top off with bread crumbs, parm cheese, and remaining shredded cheese.
Bake at 350 for about half an hour or until it bubbles.

Serve with fresh salad or by itself, enjoy!

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