How can I make my mac & cheese more interesting?

I add things like sour cream or creme fresh to the milk when I mix it....or dried yellow mustard.....sauteed veggies are good also(onions,tomaotes,spinach,mushrooms)...and topping the whole thing with buttered bread crumbs with parmesan cheese is exceptional......also varying the cheeses......Kraft has an Easy Melts American variety that is good...but gueryere.....swiss...fontina...even blue cheese if you like ....are all good choices.....if you like ,eat....bacon,ham.....pancetta.....all add a smokey kick.

Recipe created by Patti LaBelle

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 pound elbow macaroni

8 tablespoons (1 stick) plus 1 tablespoon butter

1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded Muenster cheese (I use domestic; it's milder)

1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded mild Cheddar cheese

1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack

2 cups half-and-half

1 cup (8 ounces) Velveeta, cut into small cubes

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a deep 2 1/2-quart casserole.

Bring the large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the oil, then the elbow macaroni, and cook until the macaroni is just tender, about 7 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain well. Return to the cooking pot.

In a small saucepan, melt eight tablespoons of the butter. Stir into the macaroni. In a large bowl, mix the Muenster, mild and sharp Cheddar, and Monterey Jack cheeses. To the macaroni, add the half-and-half, 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheese, the cubed Velveeta, and the eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the buttered casserole. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheese and dot with the remaining one tablespoon of butter.

Bake until it's bubbling around the edges, about 35 minutes. Serve hot.

Found this recipe online, one of my faves.

And also, here's a great indulgence for the next day left-overs:

Next Day Mac and Cheese "Toast" Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

Show: Good Eats

Episode: For Whom the Cheese Melts 2

Leftover baked macaroni and cheese, refrigerated for at least overnight

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon cayenne

1 egg beaten with 2 ounces water

1 cup panko bread crumbs

Oil for deep frying, preheated to 375 degrees

Cut refrigerated macaroni and cheese into slices or bite size pieces.

Season the flour with salt, pepper and cayenne. Dredge each piece through the flour and gently tap off excess. Dip in the egg wash and then coat with the bread crumbs. Allow them to rest for 5 minutes so the crust can set. Very carefully drop into the oil and fry until golden brown. Remove to a baking sheet fitted with a rack and rest for 2 minutes before serving.

-Wouldn't eat it everyday, but every now and then it's really good. I went back on to foodnetwork.com to find the recipe again.

Alot of cheese, make confident, then placed it in a baking dish, placed a mix of bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese on ideal, and unfold little dots of butter on ideal to brown, and then bake 425 for 10-15 minutes perhaps much less, even yet it seems fairly stable

Those are all good recipes..My mom used to cut up hot-dogs and put that in our mac and cheese!

You could put it in the oven with shredded cheese on top until the cheese has carmalized.

or

Bacon bits!

Add chopped up spinach-added iron!

Spring onions

Shredded Smoked ham

Tuna

died cooked zuccini & carrot

add cut up hot dogs or tuna, a couple slices of melted cheese on top.

put it in the oven with shredded cheese, crumbled bacon and a little bread crumbs

I love to add chili powder to the mix. I fyou like hot dogs you can slice and add those too.Try it it's good. Or maybe Ketchup!

seasoned ground beef (SO GOOD!)

hot dogs

bacon

sausages

half way melted or hard cubes of cheese