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Jalapeno Mac and Cheese with Cheetos is the ultimate baked mac and cheese recipe, studded with bits of jalapeno, with a crispy Cheetos topping and loads of creamy cheese! Not too spicy, but with a grown up flavor that you’ll be obsessed with!
Grown up mac and cheese? Say less.
Did Someone Say Cheetos?
Alright, picture this: you’re diving into a bowl of the creamiest, cheesiest mac and cheese you’ve ever tasted. But wait, this isn’t just any mac and cheese. What’s that? Are those jalapeno pepper sneaking in just the right amount of heat, giving each bite the delightful little kick?
And just when you think it can’t get any better? The crispity, crunchity, buttery Cheetos you crushed up and sprinkled over the top takes the whole experience to another level.
Worried about the kids with this one or just not too keen on spicy food? Just dial down the jalapeños a bit. Love a fiery kick? Go wild and add more!
This jalapeno mac and cheese makes a great side for potlucks. Everyone is so curious when they see the Cheetos topping and then they dig into the ultra creamy, cheesy noodles and it’s game over.
What We’re Loving About This one:
- Cheetos: This one is kind of obvious, but the cheetos really just show up and show off. Much more fun than your standard breadcrumb topping!
- Spicy Goodness: This mac and cheese is very rich and cheesy, which helps to tone down the fire in a jalapeno, making for more jalapeno flavor rather than lots of jalapeno spice. You can easily add more for extra kick or leave it as is for a unique flavor twist.
- Gooey Goodness: When it comes to mac and cheese, want the cheese sauce to be plentiful. We want the goo factor to be high. We want to take one bite and consider drowning ourselves in the goodness. We hit all those important notes here.
Serving Suggestions
While I personally could make a full meal out of our macaroni and cheese with jalapenos, I generally serve it as a side dish.
It goes great with barbecue dishes, like our slow cooker ribs, grilled BBQ chicken, or our famous pulled pork sandwiches.
Serve it at holiday dinners next to our crockpot ham or at your next backyard barbecue with our smash burgers!
Ingredient Notes:
Macaroni – I prefer macaroni in my mac and cheese, but any small shape of pasta will work. Cellatini, cavatappi, or shells works great too, because the cheese sauce can really cling to that pasta shape.
Jalapeno – You’ll need at least one seeded and minced jalapeno, but you can add more (or use less) to your taste! As is, this recipe has more jalapeno flavor than jalapeno heat so adjust accordingly.
Cheese Sauce – This rich, creamy sauce starts with butter, flour, milk and cream. That’ll get heated up (with the jalapeno!) and mixed with lots of freshly grated cheddar, smoked gouda, and cream cheese. It’s a decadent, gooey cheese sauce.
Cheetos – Use plain Cheetos for a cheesy crunch or Jalapeno Cheddar Cheetos for a little kick. If you really like spice, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos can be used as well.
Step by Step:
Saute the jalapeno in butter until softened and then stir in the spices and let those cook for a minute. This really helps open up the flavor in the spices.
Whisk in the flour and cook for a minute or two and then whisk in the milk and cream. Keep whisking until the mixture thickens up. Add in the cream cheese to melt and then stir in the shredded cheeses.
Pour the cheese sauce over the al dente macaroni and then spread the mixture into a 9×13 baking dish.
Crush the Cheetos, toss with melted butter, and sprinkle over the mac. Bake for 25 minutes at 350.
Shredded Cheese:
Those little bags of pre-shredded cheese are so convenient and we use them in our house for things like topping tacos or salads. No judgement here on taking a little shortcut!
However, when it comes to melting, we always prefer to shred our own cheese. The pre-shredded stuff has a powder to keep it from clumping and that power also prevents it from melting as smoothly.
Use a box grater, this handy little crank (which is viral on TikTok!), or a food processor.
Food Processor
We use our Breville food processor in all kinds of recipes! It makes short work of chopping veggies and many other other tasks. This is our favorite food processor because it is so heavy duty and it will last!
Jalapeno Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
For the macaroni and cheese:
- 1 pound macaroni
- ½ cup butter
- 1 small jalapeno see notes
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 12 ounces sharp cheddar cheese freshly shredded
- 6 ounces smoked gouda freshly shredded
- Salt to taste
For topping:
- 1 cup crushed Cheetos
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
To make the mac and cheese:
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter or grease a 9×13 baking dish.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the macaroni according to package directions, until just al dente. Drain the water from the pasta.
- While the pasta is starting to boil, add the butter to a medium sized sauce pan over medium heat and melt.
- While the butter is melting, mince the jalapeno. Add to the melted butter and cook, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes to soften a bit.
- Add the garlic powder, onion powder, and smoked paprika and cook for one minute, whisking constantly.
- Add the flour to the butter and continue cooking and whisking for one minute.
- Slowly pour in the milk and cream, whisking constantly, and cook over medium heat until it begins to thicken.
- Add in the cream cheese and stir until the cheese has fully melted.
- Turn the heat to the lowest setting and add handfuls of the cheese to the pot, stirring to melt the cheese into the sauce.
- Once the cheese sauce is smooth, pour over the drained and cooked macaroni and stir to coat. Taste and season liberally with salt.
- Spread the macaroni into the buttered baking dish.
For the topping:
- Add the crushed Cheetos to a small bowl and drizzle the butter over the top. Stir to coat.
- Sprinkle the Cheetos evenly over the macaroni and cheese.
- Bake for 25 minutes uncovered.
- Serve hot.
Susan B. says
I just found a stuffing recipe with both Cheetos and apple fritters in it, so this is tame by comparison. 🙂
Sallie says
OMG! Will you be my new mom??I promise I won’t tell my mom i’m cheating on her!
Winnie says
Oh my! This looks so tasty. I can’t wait to try this. Sounds like a hoot, and the kids will love this.
sally @ sallys baking addiction says
OMG. Karly. That cheetos streusel is just… like unreal. completely absurd in the best way EVER. i love youu.
Karly says
@sally @ sallys baking addiction,
Cheetos streusel? Ha!