This is, hands down, the best truffle mac and cheese recipe on the planet! This is perfect for holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter, but is also a fabulous and gourmet side dish any day of the year.
I have never claimed to be a gourmet chef, or an expert on food. But one thing I do claim? Greg and I have thebest truffle mac and cheese recipe. I don’t mean to brag (okay, maybe I do), but nothing I’ve tried out there comes close. We have made this every year since we got married and it is always a hit with our family and friends.
Greg and I went to Smith and Wollensky (which no longer exists… boo) for Houston Restaurant Week years back and ordered some truffle mac and cheese. We obsessed over how good it was and set out to make our own. So we developed our own recipe. It’s a combination of three different ones we found, taking the best. We have best truffle mac and cheese recipe for sure. I think what sets ours apart from other recipes is using cavatappi noodles, the panko breadcrumbs, and the hand-grated aged white cheddar. Obviously, the truffle oil takes this over the top.
Aww! It’s newlywed Meg & Greg with one of our first trial runs of this recipe! Aren’t we precious? To this day, we haven’t changed a thing with this recipe because it’s that good. We have requests for it for every major holiday. It is truly is perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter dinners. It doesn’t disappoint.
And you know it’s about to get good when you start out with butter, onions, rosemary, thyme, basil, half and half, heavy whipping cream, cheddar, truffle oil and wine. Just sayin’. Now let’s just get to the good stuff – the recipe. Just as an FYI, we have made this recipe with both black and white truffle oil and it comes out tasting the same. Only difference is you need to use more white truffle oil to get it to the desired flavor.
Perfect for holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter, but is also a fabulous and gourmet side dish any day of the year.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Ingredients
1 lb cavatappi pasta (If you cannot find it, you can use any small noodle)
1 and 1/4 sticks of butter
3/4 cup chopped red onion
2 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup flour
16 oz. block white aged cheddar, shredded
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
1 cup milk (any works with this recipe - we've used skim, 2%, and whole)
1/2 cup half & half
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, thyme and rosemary (1/4 cup total, not of each herb)
cracked black pepper (to taste)
1/2 cup (or more) Japanese panko breadcrumbs
Splash white wine (about 1/4 cup)
If you have black truffle oil: 1 Tbsp and 1 tsp black truffle oil (this is to your preference – start with 1 Tbsp and if that’s enough for you, stop there. Black truffle oil is more expensive and also more intense. I always add more to taste if the mood strikes me.)
If you have white truffle oil: 2-3 Tbsp.
Instructions
Boil cavatappi per package instructions, set aside.
Add butter to pot over medium-high heat. Saute the onions and garlic until they turn slightly brown. Add the flour and whisk together for 3 minutes to make a blonde roux.
Whisk in the milk, half and half, heavy whipping cream, and a splash of white wine and bring to a boil, stirring constantly to prevent the roux from burning. You may have to keep adding in additional milk if you think it’s looking a little too “flour-y”. Just eyeball it.
Cook until the roux has dissolved completely and you can no longer taste the flour.
Add the fresh herbs, the truffle oil, the cheddar, and half of the parmesan until dissolved.
Season with cracked black pepper (to taste). Incorporate the cooked cavatappi into the sauce.
Put ingredients into a baking dish. Sprinkle bread crumbs and remaining parmesan cheese on top evenly.
Place under a broiler for a few minutes until top becomes golden brown.
I hope y’all give the best truffle mac and cheese recipe a try for your next family get-together! Or just because. Let’s face it, you don’t need a reason to make truffle mac and cheese.
A creamy Brie or Camembert creates a lush backdrop for black truffle's earthy depth, while a firm, salty Pecorino is the perfect counterpoint to the milder, subtly sweet summer truffle. Additionally, the nutty, buttery flavor of an aged Gouda works well with the robust profile of white truffles.
Sauce too thick? Stir in a splash of milk and mix until the sauce has loosened up. (This is also a great trick for reheating mac and cheese - if you're microwaving leftovers and the sauce seems to have dried up, stir a splash of milk or half-and-half into the pasta to bring the sauce back to life!)
For instance, we do not recommend pairing fresh truffles with spicy or highly acidic foods because it will take away the flavor. However, truffle products are strong and can withstand spiciness and seasonings. So, preserved truffle products pair well with pretty much everything!
A creamy, nutty cheese like gruyere or parmesan pairs particularly well with the earthy, pungent flavor of the truffles. Other good pairings include gouda, brie, manchego, and blue cheese. Serve the cheese with thin slices of truffle or grated truffle and plenty of crusty bread or crackers.
Why are truffles so expensive? Pound for pound, truffle is one of the most expensive foods you can buy. The reason behind such high costs is the scarcity of the produce, truffles are seasonal, extremely difficult to grow, and take many years to cultivate. They also have a short shelf life.
Truffle cheese is any type of cheese that has been flavored with truffles, a culinary fungus that grows underground and is highly prized by chefs and foodies alike. Truffles have an earthy, pungent, nutty flavor that is truly unforgettable. Truffle cheese is flavored with truffle shavings, truffle oil, or both.
What Is the Best Cheese for Mac and Cheese? Sharp cheddar is the overwhelming popular choice, but for extra-creamy results, we think medium cheddar is even better. Other delicious options include Gruyère, smoked Gouda, and Monterey Jack.
Great mac n' cheese needs one or more cheeses that melt well, and one or more cheeses that bring the flavor. The best melters include monterey jack, fontina, baby swiss, asiago, provolone, mozzarella, and alpine-style. Cheeses for flavor: cheddar, havarti, smoked gouda, gorgonzola, feta and any other of your favorites.
Evaporated milk is a highly concentrated source of milk protein micelles—bundles of proteins that can act as powerful emulsifying agents—which help to keep the sauce creamy and smooth.
Heavy whipping cream (or half and half) is the perfect substitute for milk in mac and cheese. This is actually a great option! The thicker consistency will produce a dreamy, creamy sauce that everyone will love. The flavor is bolder and richer, too, and you may enjoy it more than the original.
You could start by adding double the butter called for on the box and adjusting as needed -- it may require some trial and error the first time around, but it will be worth it. The result will be a bowl of mac and cheese that is so rich and creamy that you may even forget that it came from a box.
These oval pockets of fresh mozzarella are a work of wonder: inside, the milky, mild cheesy goodness meets the tangy earthiness of the truffles to create a flavor blend that's unique, sophisticated and enchanting.
Traditional pairings for blue cheese include fresh fig, pear and apple slices, dried fruits, walnuts, chutneys, some jams, honey, truffle, chocolate, sherry, ports, stouts and of course wine….
Actual pieces of black truffles (1%) are added to our soft creamy cheese and make for an intense truffle kick, setting our cheese aside from most truffle brie cheeses. A truly indulgent experience!
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