WHERE TO BUY: annies.com

INGREDIENTS: Rice pasta (white rice flour, brown rice flour), cheddar cheese (pasteurized milk, cheese cultures, salt, non-animal enzymes), skim milk, cream, whey, sodium phosphate, salt, natural butter and cheese flavor, sodium alginate, lactic acid, organic annatto extract (for color), xanthan gum.

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE: No

CONTAINS STATEMENT: Milk ingredients

OTHER HELPFUL INFO: No additional ingredients needed

Reviewed October 2018

NOTE: We only recommend products that we truly LOVE, use, and are confident to recommend. Thanks to affiliate partnership opportunities, we sometimes earn a small commission if you make a purchase through a product link on our site at no cost to you. But this has no influence on what we recommend. When we do score a few shekels, know that your purchase helps support our work to bring you trustworthy, unbiased information on an amazing gluten-free food and lifestyle

WHERE TO BUY: amys.com

INGREDIENTS: Organic rice pasta (organic rice flour, water), filtered water, daiya vegan cheddar- style cheeze (filtered water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flour, expeller pressed high oleic safflower oil, coconut oil, pea protein, salt, inactive yeast, vegan natural flavors, vegetable glycerin, xanthan gum, citric acid, annatto), organic expeller pressed safflower and/or sunflower oil, organic sweet rice flour, sea salt, nutritional yeast, mustard powder.

CERTIFIED GLUTEN FREE: No

CONTAINS STATEMENT: None

OTHER HELPFUL INFO: Vegan, dairy, lactose and Soy- free; kosher; No GMO’s

Reviewed October 2018

NOTE: We only recommend products that we truly LOVE, use, and are confident to recommend. Thanks to affiliate partnership opportunities, we sometimes earn a small commission if you make a purchase through a product link on our site at no cost to you. But this has no influence on what we recommend. When we do score a few shekels, know that your purchase helps support our work to bring you trustworthy, unbiased information on an amazing gluten-free food and lifestyle.

8 ounces small dried gluten-free pasta (like elbows)

1 to 2 tablespoons (14 to 28 g) extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, chopped

3 tablespoons (27 g) Basic Gum-Free Gluten-Free Flour (see below)

6 fluid ounces (½ can) evaporated milk

1 to 1¼ cups (8 to 10 fluid ounces) milk, at room temperature

4 ounces part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

4 ounces sharp yellow Cheddar cheese, shredded

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 egg (50 g, weighed out of shell), at room temperature, beaten

Boil the pasta in a large pasta pot to an al dente texture, according to the package directions. Drain the pasta, return it to the pot, and toss it with olive oil to prevent it from sticking together. Cover the pot and set it aside.

Preheat your oven to 375°F. Generously grease the wells of two 12-cup standard muffin tins, and set them aside.

To make the cheese sauce, melt the chopped butter in a medium-size, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk to combine well. The mixture will clump at first, and then smooth after it cooks for a minute or so. This is the roux that will thicken the cheese sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture has just begun to turn a very light-brown color, about 2 minutes. Add the evaporated milk to the roux very slowly, stirring constantly to break up any lumps that might form. Add 1 cup of milk, and whisk to combine well. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened and reduced by about one-quarter, about 7 minutes. The sauce should coat the back of a spoon. Remove the saucepan from the heat, add the shredded cheeses, salt, and pepper, and mix to combine. The cheese sauce should be very thickly pourable. Add the beaten egg to the remaining milk, and pour the mixture into the cheese sauce, mixing constantly. Pour the hot cheese sauce over the cooked pasta, and stir carefully to coat all of the pasta in the cheese sauce without breaking up the pasta at all.

Fill the prepared wells of the miniature muffin tins just past the top with the macaroni and cheese mixture, and press down carefully but firmly to pack the mixture into the well. Place the muffin tins, one at a time, in the center of the preheated oven. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the muffin tins for 5 minutes before running a toothpick around the edge of each muffin well to loosen the cups and popping them out. Serve warm.

Make-Ahead Option: These mac and cheese cups can be baked ahead of time. Cool the cups completely, then freeze them in a single layer on a baking sheet before sealing them, frozen, in freezersafe wrap and returning them to the freezer. Defrost at room temperature, and reheat them in a microwave oven before serving. If you don’t have a microwave, you can reheat them in the oven. Place the cups on a lined baking sheet and preheat your oven to 300°F. Sprinkle them each with a few drops of water and place them in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes or until warm. Do not overbake.

Bigger Bite Option: Rather than baking this mac and cheese as individual cups, it can be placed in a greased 12 x 9-inch baking dish and baked at 350°F until lightly golden brown all over and set, about 35 minutes.

About the Author

Nicole Hunn