Spicy Cauliflower Mac and Cheese! Loaded with three different cheeses, leeks and seasoned, roasted cauliflower, this baked mac and cheese is a cheese lover’s dream!
You guys. . It’s National Cheese Lover’s Day! So, I made a baked mac & cheese! An epic, mind blowing mac & cheese.
With all the cold weather we’ve been experiencing here in Wisconsin, I’ve been craving comfort food like crazy and staying bundled up (in like 3 layers) here at home so there’s nothing I want more today than a big portion of this on a plate!
This cheesy goodness starts with roasted cauliflower. If you read my blog, this shouldn’t surprise you. I like throwing cauliflower into dishes and I love food with texture!
And the cheese makes this mac and cheese unforgettable. Three cheeses to be exact!
This was the best part. . taste testing like 7 different cheeses to see which ones would taste better together. I love Fontina and Cheddar together and fell in love with the Wisconsin butterkäse cheese. Have you guys tried butterkäse cheese before?
It has a very creamy texture and buttery taste. It is also called Damenkäse or “ladies cheese” because it is odorless and delicately flavored. It’s absolutely delicious! I had to stop myself from just eating it so I would have enough for the mac & cheese.
This might be the BEST baked mac & cheese I’ve made. I mean, come on.
I love that you can see the leeks and cauliflower. I hope you give this recipe a try!
And since today is National Cheese Lover’s Day, the folks at Wisconsin Cheese are throwing a Twitter party! TODAY, January 20, at 12pm EST. Just follow @WisconsinCheese on Twitter and follow this hashtag: #CheeseParty! They’ll be giving away some great prizes and lots of CHEESE so I hope you can join in on the fun!
Spicy Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
For the roasted cauliflower:
- Half head cauliflower diced fine (at least 2 cups)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon chipotle chili pepper powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon of kosher salt
For the mac and cheese:
- ½ lb. shell pasta
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon ground mustard seed
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream or 2 cups of milk
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 ½ cups Wisconsin cheddar cheese freshly grated, split
- 1 cup Wisconsin fontina cheese freshly grated
- 1 cup Wisconsin butterkase cheese freshly grated
- 1 heaping cup sautéed leeks white and tender green parts only
Instructions
For the roasted cauliflower:
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Using a parchment lined baking sheet, arrange the cauliflower on top in a single layer. Drizzle lightly with the olive oil and, using a small bowl, mix together the paprika, chipotle chili pepper powder, garlic powder and salt.
- For the rest of the instructions and to view the entire recipe card, please visit AllThingsMacAndCheese.com
For the rest of the instructions and to view the entire recipe card, please visit All Things Mac and Cheese.
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post in partnership with Wisconsin Cheese. All opinions expressed here are 100% my own.
