Loaded Bacon Jalapeño Mac & Cheese
Cast iron mac with crispy bacon, fresh jalapeño, and a golden breadcrumb crust.
Prep: 15 min · Cook: 35 min · Total: 50 min · Serves: 6 · Difficulty: Easy · Rating: 5/5 (430 reviews)
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Born from the DDD philosophy that mac and cheese should never be boring — load it up, spice it up, and bake it in cast iron.
Story
We got snowed in on a Sunday in January, the kind where school's already canceled by the night before and you know you're not leaving the house. I had a pound of cavatappi, a package of thick-cut bacon, and three sad jalapeños in the crisper. So I made the loaded bacon jalapeño mac in my 12-inch cast iron, which is the one pan I'd save in a fire. The reason this works in one skillet is you build it in stages, and the order matters. Cook the bacon first, crumble it, and reserve a couple tablespoons of the drippings. That bacon fat goes into the roux with the butter, and it's the thing that makes the whole dish taste smoky from the bottom up. The first time I made a version of this I drained all the bacon fat down the drain out of habit, and the mac tasted flat. Never again. I learned to undercook the pasta on purpose. Just al dente, because it keeps cooking under the broiler. Mushy mac is a real risk here. And you pull the cheese sauce off the heat before adding the cheddar, Monterey Jack, and cream cheese, same as any cheese sauce, or it goes grainy. The jalapeños I leave with some seeds because my husband likes heat, but if you've got kids who don't, scrape the seeds and ribs out and they're basically mild green flavor. My 7-year-old ate around the visible slices but didn't notice the heat that had cooked into the sauce, so that's a small victory. The panko on top, mixed with a little melted butter and the rest of the bacon, broils into a crust in about three minutes. Watch it, because the broiler turns golden into burnt fast. Honest assessment: this is heavy. It's a whole meal, not a side, and the leftovers the next day were even better cold standing at the open fridge at 10pm, which I'm only slightly ashamed of. The jalapeños mellow overnight. If you want to stretch it, this feeds six as a main with a green salad, which we did not have, because we were snowed in and the salad situation had collapsed days earlier.
By Casey
Ingredients
- 1 lb cavatappi or elbow pasta
- 8 slices thick-cut bacon
- 3 jalapeños, sliced
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 2 cups sharp cheddar, shredded
- 1 cup Monterey Jack, shredded
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Cook bacon in a cast iron skillet until crispy. Crumble and set aside. Reserve 2 tbsp drippings.
- Cook pasta until just al dente. Drain and set aside.
- In the same skillet, melt butter with reserved bacon fat. Whisk in flour and cook 1 minute.
- Slowly add milk, whisking constantly until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat.
- Stir in cheddar, Monterey Jack, and cream cheese until smooth. Fold in pasta, most of the bacon, and sliced jalapeños.
- Top with panko mixed with a tablespoon of melted butter and remaining bacon. Broil 3-4 minutes until golden and bubbly.
Chef Tips
- Seed the jalapeños if you want less heat, or leave them in for a real kick. The cast iron is key — it gives you that beautiful golden crust on the bottom and sides that no baking dish can match.
Cook's Notes
- **Cheese blend:** Use a combination of sharp cheddar and Gruyère for depth of flavor. Pre-shredded bags contain anti-caking agents that prevent clean melting — grate from a block.
- **Roux ratio:** Equal parts butter and flour by weight. Cooking the roux for 2 minutes before adding the milk removes the raw flour taste.
- **Jalapeño heat:** Fresh jalapeños vary significantly in heat. Taste before adding and adjust. Seeding the jalapeños removes most of the heat — keep the seeds in for significant spice.
- **Make-ahead:** The mac and cheese base can be made 2 days ahead without the crispy toppings. Reheat in a low oven (325°F) with a splash of milk, then add bacon and fresh jalapeños before serving.
- **Storage:** Fridge 4 days. Reheat with a splash of milk to restore creaminess — the pasta continues absorbing the sauce as it sits.
- **Common mistake:** Adding cheese to a sauce that's still boiling. Bring the béchamel to a gentle simmer, then remove from heat before whisking in cheese. Boiling breaks the emulsion and produces grainy sauce.
- **Pasta tip:** Cook pasta 2 minutes less than al dente. It finishes cooking in the sauce and absorbs flavor — overcooked pasta turns mushy when combined with hot sauce.