This is a really easy, really simple jalapeño mac and cheese recipe that I created on the fly when searching for comfort food on a Sunday night. It turns out, sometimes that produces the best recipes - because I will definitely be using this one over and over again through the holidays. My favorite part about this is how few ingredients I used to create this concoction - while most mac and cheese recipes use a combination of 4 or 5 cheeses, I opted for just using two. There is cheddar in the sauce and parmesan is used for the crust. The dish really allows each cheese to speak for itself, and the jalapeño gives it that spicy accent and textured bite that brings everything together so well.
The full dish is made over the stovetop, and then thrown into the oven to broil for the last bit - which is the crispy, crunchy crust. I always, always use shell macaroni when making macaroni and cheese, and that's because I absolutely love how it absorbs so much of the sauce and how the little pockets carry over into your fork when you eat them.
Whether it's Thanksgiving, Christmas, or a random weeknight - I definitely urge you to try this one. It can be brought together in under an hour and can feed a village, as needed!