Eleven ingredients and about forty minutes, using a muffin tin instead of a baking dish.
There is no breadcrumb coating here. The bites hold together because of one egg stirred into cooled macaroni cheese, and their edges crisp because cheese browns against hot metal.
Why This Recipe Works
- Cooking the macaroni a minute short keeps it firm through the bake.
- A small flour-and-butter base makes a sauce thick enough to coat every elbow.
- Cooling the mixture five minutes stops the egg scrambling when it goes in.
- Packing the cups firmly is what makes a bite that lifts out whole.
- Direct contact with the greased tin gives the deeply browned edges.
One Bite, and Why It Holds
A tray of baked macaroni cheese can be spooned. A bite has to stand up on its own, and what makes that possible is the binder: ONE BEATEN EGG. This is one of the twelve cups.
What goes into one bite
The GREASED CUP
One cup of a 12-CUP MUFFIN TIN COATED WITH NONSTICK SPRAY. The metal is what browns the outside, and the spray is what lets the bite leave it whole.
The MACARONI - a minute short
A twelfth of 8 oz ELBOW MACARONI COOKED 1 MINUTE SHY OF AL DENTE. Undercooked deliberately: it has 18 to 22 minutes in the oven still to come.
The CHEESE SAUCE
1 tbsp BUTTER, 1 tbsp FLOUR and 3/4 cup WHOLE MILK SIMMERED UNTIL THICK, with 1 1/2 cups SHARP CHEDDAR and 1/2 cup MOZZARELLA MELTED IN and 1/4 tsp each of SALT and BLACK PEPPER.
The EGG - after five minutes of cooling
The mixture COOLED 5 MINUTES, then 1 BEATEN EGG STIRRED IN AS THE BINDER. Cooling first is the difference between a binder and scrambled egg through the macaroni.
PACKED FIRMLY
PACKED FIRMLY INTO THE MUFFIN CUPS and BAKED 18 TO 22 MINUTES UNTIL SET WITH DEEPLY BROWNED CHEESY EDGES - for safety they must be fully set, and firm packing is what stops a bite collapsing when it is lifted.
RESTED 5 MINUTES BEFORE LIFTING OUT and FINISHED WITH 1 tbsp CHOPPED CHIVES OR PARSLEY. Twelve bites, without the two things usually served with them: NO CRUMB COATING OR DIPPING SAUCE.
How to Make It
Oven at 375°F and a 12-cup tin sprayed
Heat the oven to 375°F and coat a 12-cup muffin tin with nonstick spray.
Macaroni cooked a minute shy of al dente
Cook the macaroni 1 minute shy of al dente and drain.
Butter, flour and milk thickened, both cheeses melted in
Melt the butter, whisk in the flour, then the milk. Simmer until thick. Melt in the cheddar and mozzarella and season with the salt and pepper.
Cooled five minutes, then the beaten egg stirred in
Cool the macaroni-cheese mixture 5 minutes, then stir in the beaten egg as the binder.
Packed firmly, baked until set, rested five minutes
Pack firmly into the muffin cups and bake 18 to 22 minutes, until set with deeply browned cheesy edges. Rest 5 minutes before lifting out and finish with the chives or parsley.
Ingredient Notes
- One beaten egg
- The binder. It is stirred in after the mixture has cooled, and it must bake through.
- Sharp cheddar and mozzarella
- A cup and a half with half a cup. The cheddar browns at the edges and the mozzarella holds the bite together.
- Elbow macaroni
- Eight ounces, cooked a minute short so it does not soften further in the tin.
- Nonstick spray
- Not optional. Twelve cheesy bites will not come out of a dry tin in one piece.
Success Tips
- Let the mixture cool the full five minutes before the egg goes in.
- Press each cup down hard with the back of a spoon so the bites hold their shape.
- Rest five minutes before lifting them, then run a knife round the edge of each.
Serving Ideas
Twelve round bites piled on a plate, elbow macaroni set in cheese with deeply browned crisp edges, scattered with chopped chives or parsley - no dip alongside.
Frequently Asked Questions
What holds the bites together?
One beaten egg, stirred into the cooled macaroni cheese. The bites are baked until fully set.
Is there a breadcrumb coating?
No. The crisp outside is browned cheese from contact with the tin, and there is no dipping sauce either.
How do I get them out cleanly?
Spray the tin well, rest the bites five minutes after baking, and loosen the edges before lifting.
