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Carbonara mac and cheese is the best comfort food mash up. Creamy homemade carbonara sauce is mixed with extra cheese and crispy peppered bacon for the best dish for a weeknight or Sunday dinner!
This post was originally published in October 2020 and has been updated for content.
Carbonara is one of my ABSOLUTE favorite pasta dishes. Carbonara is a rich Italian pasta dish that consists of a sauce made from egg and cheese, usually with the addition of bacon or pancetta and black pepper.
This mac and cheese variation includes peppered thick cut bacon along with white cheddar and parmesan cheeses. Serve this creamy, rich pasta with roasted artichokes, grilled zucchini or celery salad.
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🧀 Ingredients notes
- Pasta - Larger shell pasta is perfect to use for this mac and cheese because it holds onto all of the cheesy, creamy sauce. Other good options would be cavatappi, elbow macaroni or fusilli.
- Bacon - Thick cut bacon renders down well to make crispy bits that pair with the rich and creamy sauce. Peppered bacon adds a slight kick to the dish that is reminiscent of the black pepper flavor in regular carbonara. Regular bacon will also work if that is what is available.
- Cheese - A combination of white cheddar and parmesan cheeses are used for this pasta. Either extra sharp or a more mild white cheddar can be used and either grated or shredded parmesan will work. Asiago or pecorino romano would also be great additions!
📋 Substitutions and variations
- Vegetarian - To make this mac and cheese vegetarian, omit the bacon and use 2 Tablespoons of butter or olive oil in the pot in place of the bacon grease.
- Meat - Instead of bacon, use pancetta, prosciutto or italian sausage!
🔪 Step by step instructions
First, cook your pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, then drain it and set it aside. Next, cook the bacon in that same pot until it's rendered down and crispy. Remove the bacon out of the pot and drain all but 2 Tablespoons of the bacon grease from the pot.
Whisk the flour into the grease until it is completely absorbed and then slowly pour in the milk, while whisking. Cook that for about 3-5 minutes, while stirring, until it thickens.
Remove the sauce off of the heat and slowly pour ½ cup of the sauce into a small bowl with the beaten eggs, while whisking continuously. Once the sauce is mixed completely into the eggs, slowly whisk the egg mixture back into the pot of sauce.
Let the sauce cook, while whisking, for another 3-5 minutes until it starts to bubble and thicken and then remove it off of the heat. Mix in the cheddar cheese, half of the parmesan, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Add the cooked pasta to the pot and stir to coat it with all of the sauce.
Place your pasta in a serving dish and top with the remaining parmesan cheese and crispy bacon pieces.
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⭐ Expert tips
- Cook the bacon over medium heat and make sure to remove it from the pot when it just starts to look crispy. There is some cooking that will happen after you remove it from the pot, so you don't want to wait too long or else it will burn.
- Make sure to remove the sauce off of the heat while you temper the sauce into the eggs to prevent burning.
- Adding a bit of sauce into the eggs first, tempers them and allows them to slowly heat up without them scrambling. If you were to just whisk the eggs into the sauce while it's on the heat, they would more than likely scramble.
- Returning the sauce to the heat after adding the eggs should be done on medium low heat to make sure the sauce thickens and cooks, but doesn't scramble.
- Adding the cheese while the sauce is off of the heat makes sure the cheese melts in slowly without separating or burning.
⏲️ Make ahead instructions
Both the bacon and sauce can all be made 1-2 days ahead of time and stored separately in the airtight containers in the refrigerator. At serving time, heat the sauce on medium low heat on the stovetop, while stirring occasionally. A little bit of milk can be added if the sauce is too thick. Bacon can be re-heated in a pan over medium heat on the stovetop. The pasta can be boiled during this time as well. Toss the reheated sauce with the pasta and finish with the parmesan cheese and crispy bacon pieces.
🥡 Storage suggestions
Leftover carbonara mac and cheese will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave or on the stovetop in a pot with a little bit of extra milk.
🍝 More comfort food pasta dishes
If you loved this carbonara mac and cheese, check out these other comfort food dishes that I know you will love too!
- The Best Pasta Fagioli
- Classic Italian Lasagna Recipe
- Baked Mostaccioli con Ricotta
- Authentic Italian Manicotti
Recipe
Carbonara Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta shells
- ½ pound thick cut peppered bacon, diced
- 2 Tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- 2 large eggs, slightly beaten
- 1 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Cook pasta shells in a large pot of boiling salted water, according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Return the pot to the stovetop over medium heat and add the bacon. Cook for about 10 minutes until crispy. Remove the bacon from the pot and allow it to drain on a paper towel. Remove all but 2 Tablespoons of the bacon grease.
- Sprinkle the flour into the pot with the bacon grease and whisk to combine. Continue to whisk and cook for 1 minute.
- While whisking, slowly pour in the milk, scraping the bottom of the pot to remove any stuck on bits. Continue to cook, while whisking, for 3-5 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken.
- Remove the sauce off of the heat and slowly pour ½ cup of the sauce into a small bowl with the beaten eggs while whisking continuously. Once the egg is mixed completely with the sauce, whisk it back into the pot with the remaining sauce.
- Lower the heat to medium low and cook, while whisking for 3-5 additional minutes until the sauce is thickened.
- Remove from the sauce off of heat and whisk in the cheddar cheese, half of the parmesan cheese, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
- Mix the cooked pasta into the finished sauce, stirring until the sauce coats the pasta completely.
- Pour the finished pasta into a serving dish and sprinkle with the remaining parmesan cheese and crispy bacon pieces.
Notes
- Cook the bacon over medium heat and make sure to remove it from the pot when they just start to look crispy to prevent burning.
- Make sure to remove the sauce off of the heat while the eggs are being tempered in so it doesn't burn.
- Slowly adding a bit of sauce to the eggs tempers them so they heat up slowly and don't scramble.
- Returning the sauce to the heat after adding the eggs should be done on medium low heat to make sure the sauce thickens and cooks, without scrambling.
- Adding the cheese while the sauce is off of the heat makes sure the cheese melts in slowly without separating or burning.
Substitutions and Variations
- Pasta - Larger shell pasta is great to hold the cheesy, creamy sauce. Other good options would be cavatappi, elbow macaroni or fusilli.
- Bacon - Peppered bacon adds the slight kick to the dish that is reminiscent of the black pepper flavor in regular carbonara. Regular bacon will also work if that is what is available.
- Cheese - Either extra sharp or a more mild white cheddar can be used and either grated or shredded parmesan will work. Asiago or pecorino romano would also be great additions!
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