Gluten-Free Macaroni and Cheese

I love macaroni and cheese. It's probably one of my favorite things to eat ever, so you can bet as soon as I got my celiac diagnosis, one of my first priorities was figuring out how to make my mac and cheese gluten-free. Part of doing that was testing out a gluten-free roux and the resulting béchamel, which you can find here. This mac and cheese is delicious and I don't find I miss anything from the original that I can't get in the gluten-free version! You can easily cut down this recipe if you want less mac and cheese, but I'm feeding three people, so this is my recipe to make enough for everyone and have leftovers.

  

Ingredients: 

• 4 cups béchamel
• 4 cups shredded cheese of your choice; a blend of cheeses is usually better! If you prefer shredding it yourself, you can get blocks, but I personally get a bag of a shredded cheese blend for ease of access
• 2 tbsp Dijon mustard or mustard powder; if you are allergic to mustard or have issues finding a certified gluten-free mustard, you can use a dash of Worcestershire (ensure it is gluten-free! not all Worcestershire sauce is) and turmeric
• your favorite seasoning blend, to taste
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup sour cream 
• milk, to thin out sauce if needed 
• 12 ounces of your favorite gluten-free pasta - equivalent to 1 box of pasta; it doesn't have to be macaroni if you don't have macaroni available!
•  optional: bacon or turkey bacon

Directions: 

1. If using bacon: chop bacon into bite-size pieces and add to a cold pot. Cook on medium heat until desired crispiness. Set aside in a glass or ceramic prep bowl. Optional: you can use whatever grease is left over from the bacon to add to your roux! Simply measure out the bacon grease and make up the difference with your other fat of choice.
2. Set salted water to boil in a separate pot. 
3. Make your roux and béchamel using instructions found here in the same pot you used to cook your bacon (to lessen the amount of pots and pans used).
4. Gradually add your shredded cheese into your bechamel, stirring as you go until it is fully melted and incorporated.
5. Add your pasta to the water once water is at a rolling boil.
6. While pasta cooks, add mustard, seasonings, salt, and sour cream to cheese sauce and mix until incorporated. If sauce is too thick, add a bit of milk to thin it out.
7. Drain pasta, leaving behind some of the pasta water. Add pasta and reserved pasta to cheese sauce, mix to incorporate, and (optional) mix in bacon.