Easy, creamy, Slow Cooker 4 Cheese Macaroni – a fun twist on an old classic made right in your crockpot!
Wow, I feel like it has been ages since I’ve posted a slow cooker recipe. And by ages I mean weeks. Which is the equivalent of ages in blog time. Because I am a borderline crockpot addict and usually have to post at least 1 (if not 5) slow cooker recipes per week to keep my needs satisfied.
I can’t help myself. A crockpot is a beautiful thing.
Look at all of that CREAMY cheese sauce! It makes me want to face-plant right into this bowl of deliciousness. Just looking at it makes me want to swoon.
You had me at four cheese.
We had my sister and nephew over last night for dinner and this is what I served. I told them I was making “fancy mac n’ cheese”. My sister is a pasta-lover of the most obsessive kind and my nephew, well he’s 15.
Enough said.
This entire pot of 4 cheese macaroni was demolished by the end of the meal. My nephew probably put away a good half of it (growing boys. what can ya do) but even so, we each had a big fat helping of this dreamy stuff and snarfed it down in no time.
You know what else? I’m thinking this dish could be the answer to bridging that gap between what the grownups want for dinner, and the only things they can get their picky little eaters to go for.
Macaroni magic.
What people are saying about this Slow Cooker 4 Cheese Macaroni
“I just made this tonight for dinner and yum-o! I was worried at the hour point when I added the mustard, garlic and salt because it was really runny but it thickened up nicely in that last 20 minutes. I also tweaked it at the end – I put each serving in it’s own oven safe bowl, topped it with panko bread crumbs and a sprinkle of parmesan and put it under the broiler for a couple of minutes and it upped the amazing by a million percent. Thanks for the recipe!!!” – Nicole
“AMAZING!! I’m so happy!! First one I’ve had that didn’t look dry and clumpy. It was done sooner, probably could have pulled it at 1:20, so I added the seasonings a big earlier. I did use some extra milk toward the end. A little kick of cayenne and nutmeg went nicely. Also skipped Gruyere because the store didn’t have it so used extra cheddar, havarti and some parm.” – Lauren
Slow Cooker 4 Cheese Macaroni
Ingredients
- 12-14 ounces macaroni elbows - (uncooked)
- 1 ⅔ cup milk
- 1 12-ounce can evaporated milk
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese - (sliced or shredded)
- 4 ounces creamy havarti cheese - (sliced or shredded)
- 2-4 ounces gruyere cheese
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt - (or to taste)
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- optional: grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley for topping
Instructions
- Add macaroni, milks, and cheeses to slow cooker. Stir to combine. Cover and cook on low for 1 hour.
- After one hour add ground mustard, salt, and garlic powder. Stir to combine. Cover and cook 20-30 minutes longer. Check to see if macaroni is tender and cheese is fully melted. If needed, cover and cook 15-30 minutes longer. Serve warm and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and parsley if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe adapted from Host the Toast
What type of gruyere should I use? My grocery store has mild, medium, intense and Swiss gruyere
Any will work, just depends on personal preference! Personally, I’d go for the medium 🙂
I want to double the recipe. Do I double the cook time?
Thanks!
This recipe was really good. The only suggestion I would make is to cut the garlic powder to just one teaspoon. After my batch was done cooking, I had to add another 2 cups of milk to cut the extreme garlic taste.
Hi! I’m hoping to make this for our Christmas dinner. I scrolled through the comments and didn’t see this answered. If I were to double the recipe, what adjustments would you make on time? I know, from a recent bad experience, that cooking cheese in the crockpot too long breaks the cheese to lumps 😝
AMAZING!! I’m so happy!! First one I’ve had that didn’t look dry and clumpy. It was done sooner, probably could have pulled it at 1:20, so I added the seasonings a big earlier. And i did use some extra milk toward the end. A little kick of cayenne and nutmeg went nicely. Also skipped Gruyere because the store didn’t have it so used extra cheddar, havarti and some parm.
It’s cool that the recipe is adjustable, but I think that havarti and cream cheese are absolutely neccesary for the creamy factor.
And talk about quick and easy!!
Thanks!!