Smoked Gouda Macaroni and Cheese

I am so surprised to read how many people thought this recipe was bland and unremarkable. I have to wonder if it was the particular brand of smoked Gouda or parmesan. I used Trader Joe's brand gouda and a domestic parmesan from Whole Foods. I made it with baby spinach (all five cups).

My adjustments were using 2% milk, and subbing panko crumbs (I agree that dealing with using and washing the food processor for one piece of bread is not worth it). I also mixed a little extra parmesan in with the panko on top.

I loved this recipe and will make it again. and again. and again.

This is very good. family loves it. I use panko instead dragging out the food processor to grind up one piece of bread. Otherwise followed it exactly. yummmy :)

I love cooking light recipes typically, however I am unsure of how this received 4 stars. It was blah, just tasted of noodles, no cheesy goodness. I will not be making this again. In defense of the recipe I did add too many noodles, however it was still not very flavorful. Too bad.

Thought this was fantastic! This is my new go-to macaroni and cheese recipe. My toddler wouldn't eat it...however, he won't eat any homemade macaroni cheese at this point.

I agree with other reviews that the Gouda doesn't really stand out. Next time I will probably reserve some cheese and sprinkle on top after baking.

Smoked gouda makes ordinary baked mac & cheese special! I modified the recipe by doubling the amount of both cheeses and halving the spinach. 5 cups of spinach would have been way too much.

A friend and I made this recipe for a work Mac & Cheese competition and it won "Best Overall!" Based on other reviewers' suggestions, we used less spinach than a double batch called for and added prosciutto. It's a keeper!

i've made quite a few CL macaroni and cheeses, so I combined them all in this recipe and had amazing results. I sauteed a leek with the butter, then added flour and taking a que from other recipes, added a little white wine, used 1% milk, and added in some shredded robusto cheese. Also think I had closer to 3/4 or 1 cup smoked gouda, and I also added two teaspoons of dijon mustard into the sauce. Topped with a mixture of my own breadcrumbs and panko with chives. It was *really* good. Believe it or not Whole Foods was out of spinach, so in stead I roasted brussel sprouts to eat with the cheese on the side. Very good!

Yummy. I added shredded smoked Gouda to the top of the casserole before putting on the breadcrumbs.

I made this recipe in the past and remember it being outstanding, but when I made again just recently, I had to revise my opinion. The bread crumbs on top don't mix with the flavors of the sauce, and the sauce is a little on the bland side (even with smoked gouda - which is my favorite cheese). The base with the milk, flour, etc. would NOT get thick for me and it took about 3 x's as long as the recipe said with the addition of another tbsp of flour. Finally, I just mixed in more cheese to try and get it to thicken up. Overall, I found myself getting incredibly frustrated with the recipe and wondering how on earth I remembered it being a keeper. Admittedly, I first made the recipe when I was just starting out cooking "light" so perhaps with all the really outstanding recipes I have made in the interim, this one just doesn't make the grade anymore. I would recommend trying out another C.L. mac & cheese recipe and won't be making this again.

So delicious! I usually skip the baking part of the recipe because I just cannot wait to eat it. I love the sneaky spinach inside this mac, too!

Good recipie. I skipped the bread crumbs and used penne and May-Bud Hickory Smoked Gouda. The dish is best eaten fresh as the flavors transform negatively over time. Other Gouda's I considered Red Apple Choice Apple Smoked Gouda - tastes like mild chedder King's Choice Gouda Style smoked cheese - not good. Got it from target not realizing that it wasn't a real Gouda Would love to try this recipie with a high quality Gouda but I only had access to the chain grocery stores.

Walked into the local cheese shop today, saw smoked Gouda, and immediately thought of this recipe. It caught my eye in Cooking Light years ago, but I never had the opportunity to make it until now. So delicious. We didn't have quite enough spinach, so I mixed in some arugula that I had on hand. The only other change I made was to use this special penne that was flavoured with chili peppers, which was lovely. Oh, and I put some fresh, sliced tomatoes on top of the bread crumbs, because my Mom always puts tomatoes on top of baked Mac and Cheese. It was awesome.

I have made this twice and both times I could only find sliced gouda...the results were thick, un-creamy mac and cheese. Next time I will try to either find shredded gouda or use a different chees that melts better.

This was very easy to make and tasty, but it didn't have much kick or flavor. So i added a little asiago cheese to give the pasta more of a bite and a distinct flavor. The asiago added more character to the dish. I would definitely make this again. the spinach was delicious in it!

this is actually very good. i added double the amount of gouda and some diced pancetta, otherwise made to recipe. came out creamy with a good flavor. will make again.

Always a favorite in our house!

Loved this, will make again, though will increase sauce ingredients by 25% next time. Used 1/2 of a 7oz. wheel of smoked gouda, shredded, whole wheat elbows,hot pepper flakes,and a box of frozen, chopped spinach. Diced in 8 oz. fat-free ham, too. Hard not to keep going back for more! (Had more salad instead)

The only thing wrong with this recipe is sticking to only 1 1/4 cups! Was really really good.

Big hit at our house. Excellent with leftover diced ham. Instead of breadcrumbs, I use crushed weetabix, which adds a slightly nutty flavor. This is my go-to mac & cheese recipe.

Absolutely delicious...I used a little bit more cheese, wheat macaroni, baby spinach,Italian bread crumbs and half the milk. Came out great!! I was going to have this as a side dish, but ended up having it as the main meal. VERY FILLING!! Going to try steamed broccoli on the side next time I make it.

This is a lovely "adult" macaroni and cheese! I believe the smoked gouda should be selected carefully as the flavor can be lost. The dish does tend to become a little dry after setting, we just whipped up a little white sauce the following day and it was enjoyed by all, once again :)

Loved it - made exactly as written. Will definitely make again. Served with roasted turkey tenderloin and butternut squash.

Love this recipe. I substituted panko for the regular bread crumbs and a box of thawed frozen spinach for the fresh spinach.... extra spinach-y.

This was absolutely delicious!! Pairs really well with fish or chicken. Quite possibly one of the best things I have ever eaten in my life.

Solid weeknight recipe. I served it with breaded tilapia for an adult version of fish sticks and macaroni and cheese. The spinach was a great addition and I'll probably make this again sometime.

Love the smokiness of the gouda paired with the Parmesan (I actually used Asiago), but the spinach in it was just okay and didn't hold up very well when nuked the next day. Next time I think I'll substitue broccoli. It was very creamy, though, and that's why it will stay in my repertoire.

Loved the flavor of the gouda, but really need to reduce the amount of spinach. When done it looked nothing like the picture there was so much spinach! 5 cups spinach to 4 cups macaroni does not make sense. I thought it would decrease once it baked but it was still a lot.

Two cups of milk was way too much. I ended up with a soupy mess up until I nearly quadrupled the amount of cheese the original recipe called for. Overall there was great taste but just way too soupy.

So maybe I added a *little* extra cheese, because, well, I love cheese. That didn't seem to hurt this tasty recipe. =)

Loved this recipe! The smoked cheese has such a strong flavor, you can use less and still have big flavor.

This has potential, though it's not the best mac 'n cheese recipe I've tried. I added only 2/3 of the pasta and still couldn't really taste the gouda, so I added a little more. I also used a 10-oz. package of frozen spinach, which I gathered was roughly equivalent to 4 cups of fresh; this may have taken up too much of the sauce if it was too much. I would probably make this again, although I'd more likely just use this to make creamed spinach! :)

A great different approach to mac 'n cheese. My husband claims not to like smoked anything, but we loved this. Fresh spinach makes this very tastey. Not too many leftovers. Serve with a spinach salad.

I was a little dissapointed with this recipe, as I am a huge fan of Gouda, Spinach and pasta in general, however the recipe as a whole fell a little flat. There wasn't enough flavor, I ended up adding extra cheese however than the recipe is no longer a healthy alternative to mac n cheese. I really prefer the other mac n cheese recipe from cooking light that includes Cauliflower, anyone looking for a lighter alternative should definately try that recipe.

A very flavorful and filling dish! I used whole wheat elbow macaroni to add more fiber and protein to the dish, but that is the only substitution I made.....followed recipe to a T otherwise and came out absolutely fantastic! This mac and cheese is creamy, yet light....very sophisticated... I could not bear to buy the boxed stuff and was in search of a "keeper" recipe that was relatively healthy and packed in more nutrients.... this one is it! Will make this a staple and will try with ham or turkey sausage next time I make it! Delicious!!!

My husband loves this recipe and he is a real meat and potatoes kinda guy. I usually use whole baby spinach leaves and a white or yellow onion instead of the green onion called for in the recipe, otherwise I follow the recipe to a tee. It has a light flavor and is wonderful with steamed broccoli.

I followed the recipe... This was absolutely delicious! It left me with left overs and it's not as cheesy-creamy so I plan on adding some milk and a little extra cheese (mix/stirring it all again) and baking it again to revive it some. I will make this again!

I made this for the first time tonight and thought it tasted great! The one thing I'll note is that it's not incredibly flavorful. I wouldn't call it bland at all, but it seemed like something was missing. More garlic maybe? I'll have to play around with this recipe some more and let you know. Overall, very happy with the result. And I guess I should also note that I followed the recipe to a T.

I used whole wheat pasta. It was delicious!