I love making mac and cheese. It’s a really good thing to make for two people, because the leftovers are awesome. It re-heats so well. Mac and cheese is one of those versatile things you can add lots of stuff to, left over this or that, and it’s pretty much always good. Today we have a Baked Elote Mac and Cheese recipe for you and its so freaking good. Like so so good. Elote is one of our favorite dishes, and you may remember a long time ago we posted this recipe for Elote Fritters (which is a very addicting appetizer, consider just making it your meal cause you wont be able to stop!). Anyway, I love the corn in the mac and cheese, it’s such a nice texture to pair with the cheesy pasta, and the chili powder gives it a nice kick. Hope you all will make this recipe and enjoy it as much as I did!
Love mac and cheese as much as us? Check out our other versions:
- Creamy Skillet Mac and Cheese
- Baked Carbonara Mac and Cheese
- Creamed Corn Mac and Cheese
- White Cheddar Mac and Cheese
- Vegan Stovetop Mac and Cheese
- Baked Spinach and Artichoke Mac and Cheese
- Five Cheese Baked Mac and Cheese
- Pumpkin Thyme Mac and Cheese
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Elote Baked Mac and Cheese
INGREDIENTS
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons chipotle chile powder
- 2 teaspoons ancho chile powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened and divided
- 2 ears sweet corn kernels
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 12 ounces shredded white cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro, divided
- 1 pound cavatelli pasta, cooked al dente and drained
- 6 ounces crumbled cotija cheese, divided
- 1 lime, juiced
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 375˚F. Lightly grease a 13”x9” baking dish and set aside.
- Place first 6 ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir together until well blended together. Set aside.
- Place 2 tablespoons butter into a medium pot and melt over medium-high heat. Add corn and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes. Pour corn out into a small mixing bowl and set aside.
- Place pot back onto the stove and lower heat to medium. Add remaining butter and melt.
- Add flour and stir together to create a roux. Stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in milk and continue to stir until mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon and no lumps remain.
- Stir in cheese, 2 ounces at a time until fully incorporated and mixture is smooth. Add all but 1 ½ teaspoons of the spice mixture to the cheese sauce and stir in 2 tablespoons of cilantro.
- Place cooked pasta in a large mixing bowl and pour cheese sauce over. Stir together until all the pasta is well coated. Fold in the corn, 2 ounces of cotija cheese and lime juice into the pasta mixture until well combined. Adjust seasonings.
- Pour mixture into the prepared baking dish and top with remaining cotija cheese, spice blend and finally cilantro.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until mixture is bubbly and slightly browned on top.
- Cool for about 10 minutes, scoop and serve.
Did you make this recipe? We want to see!
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We had left over elite corn from a catered event. I adjusted the seasonings a bit, but followed the recipe exactly—-maybe added additional corn. My kitchen smells so yummy. Thanks for the inspiration.
These are a few of my favorite things….And why I workout religiously. Looks amazingly delicious and perfect for football Sunday!
Great recipe! Yummy
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http://www.mecooks.com
This is pure genius!! I love the idea of combining these two dishes! Definitely will be making this :)
Thanks for this recipe! I made it last night, was delicious :) I used about 300g of pasta (just a little more than half of what you specified), but the full sauce quantities.
This sounds so delicious, I can’t wait to have baked mac and cheese now. It one of my family’s favorites and they always appreciate when I find tasty new variations.
This is a great twist on M&C. It is great and we will have it again and again. Thanks
This is not real!! Seriously this looks amazing, combining two of my favorite foods ever — making this asap!
I love mac and cheese and this was so good!
I love corn with macaroni and cheese. And the cotija cheese = wonderful!
I want to eat it! Right now!!
Oh my gosh this is a dream come true. I love love love elote with all the creamy goodness on top and I bet it’s even better with mac and cheese. Must try this.
This sounds like a dish that my husband and I would devour! And how can you not like corn in a dish? Its naturally sweet so I bet the contrast with the chile powder is perfect. This dish is happening soon!
This looks so good! Whenever I try to make homemade mac and cheese the cheese becomes rubber….you can literally pull it. Am I cooking the sauce too long? It never stays nice and creamy :(
If you’re making a roux (like the recipe directs) it’s helpful to remove the pain from the heat when adding the cheese to the bechamel (roux with milk). You may be cooking it too long causing it to become stringy.