Word of the dish spread like wildfire and the cooking technique was passed orally through the enslaved community, creating a staple for the African-American and southern dinner table. Hemings learned of the dish during his travels to Europe with Jefferson and produced the cheesy, savory side we all know and love. Although the dish has European roots, the version Americans are familiar with today can be attributed to James Hemings, President Thomas Jefferson's highly skilled enslaved chef. Whatever combination you prefer as there really aren’t any rules for this part.Baked macaroni and cheese is a quintessential southern side dish. You can also use a mixture of cheese such as half sharp cheddar cheese and half Gouda. For the shredded cheese, it is best to buy the cheese in bulk (the block) and shred it yourself because it melts so much better in my opinion. It definitely makes for a thick and creamy cheese sauce that binds well to the cooked macaroni pasta. I took a page from my uncle’s book and chose to use half-and-half and heavy cream instead of milk. This recipe makes a large rectangle 9x13 inch baking dish, but you can cut the recipe in half and bake it in a square baking dish instead. Over the years, I have tried to duplicate his recipe with no success, but along the way, I came up with my own version that I will share with you now. It was always amazing and at get-togethers, if it was on the table, there was definitely not going to be any leftovers for you to take home to enjoy later. I had an uncle that made the absolute best mac and cheese ever! He only used Cracker Barrel cheese, along with a little bit of sugar, and instead of milk, he used heavy cream and half-and-half. The best mac and cheese to me has all of those things in the perfect balance.

This dish is also not that complicated at all, but I have had some mac and cheese that is too dry, too wet, not enough pasta, too much pasta, not enough cheese, no seasoning…the whole thing sounds like a science experiment gone wrong. Which is actually surprising when you think about the few ingredients that are involved. Macaroni and Cheese is one of those dishes that can go very wrong very fast.

Southern Mac and Cheese is easy to make, loaded with flavor, and perfect to share with your friends and family.

Best southern mac cheese recipe ever