Best-Ever Slowcooker Mac and Cheese with Crystal Farms

- Mama

 

This slow cooker macaroni and cheese really is the best ever-- it's creamy, and even has bits of ham!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post from Crystal Farms, but all opinions are my own.

I love macaroni and cheese. It seems like the ultimate comfort food, especially in the winter. The best mac and cheese is creamy, with just the right amount of good, wholesome cheese.

So, when I teamed up with Crystal Farms and saw their mac and cheese blend, I knew exactly what I needed to do. And, you’re going to want to stick around to the very end for this one, because you could win this Crock Pot Programmable Cook and Carry Slow Cooker and some Crystal Farms coupons so you can make Mac and Cheese just like this at home (plus a ton of other great cheesy slow cooker recipes!)

Crock Pot Programmable Cook and Carry Slow Cooker

 

Now, let’s get cooking on that slow cooker mac and cheese.

Best-ever slow cooker mac and cheese

Start with shell-style pasta, Crystal Farms butter, an onion, red bell pepper, some garlic, a little milk, some ham, and Crystal Farms Mac and Cheese Blend Cheese.

Best-ever slow cooker mac and cheese with onions, bell pepper, and ham.

Dice your onion and red bell pepper, and mince some garlic as you melt butter in your slow cooker on high.

This best-ever mac and cheese contains ham, bell pepper, and onion, and it's SO creamy!

Add in your onion, bell pepper, and garlic, stirring for a few minutes.

This best-ever mac and cheese is so creamy, and it is slow-cooked!

Then, add flour, stirring it into the butter. Whisk in a carton of chicken broth. This will help make the mac and cheese as hearty and creamy as possible. Add in some milk, diced ham, salt, and ground red bell pepper.

This mac and cheese blend is the best cheese for making slow cooker mac and cheese!

Now, you just let it cook. Cover the slow cooker, letting it do it’s thing on low or medium for 8-10 hours. 30 minutes before you’re ready to eat, stir in the your pasta shells and your cheese. Turn the slow cooker on high, and let it do it’s thing for half an hour. When you come back, the pasta will be cooked, there will be little to no liquid left, and the cheese will be melted in… and trust me, it’ll be oh-so-creamy, with plenty of flavor from the onion, bell pepper, and ham.

One great feature of Crystal Farms cheese, as listed on their website, is that it’s gluten free (like all cheeses), but also lactose tolerant! Yay!

Print
Best-Ever Slowcooker Mac and Cheese

Best-Ever Slowcooker Mac and Cheese

Ingredients

  • 16 oz shell pasta, uncooked
  • 4 Tablespoons Crystal Farms butter
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 carton chicken broth
  • 8 ounces cooked chopped ham (I used pre-cooked diced ham)
  • 2 Cups 2% milk
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
  • 2 Cups Crystal Farms shredded Mac and Cheese Blend Cheese

Instructions

  1. Melt butter in slow cooker and stir onion, bell pepper, and garlic in.
  2. Stir in flour, then whisk in chicken broth until mixture is smooth.
  3. Add ham, milk, salt, and ground red pepper. Close slow cooker and set on medium or low for 8-10 hours.
  4. 30 minutes before serving, add cooked pasta and shredded cheese, close the slow cooker, and leave on high for 30 minutes or until pasta is cooked, liquid is mostly absorbed, and cheese is melted.
  5. Top with additional cheese and/or sour cream.

Notes

Adapted from http://www.crystalfarmscheese.com/recipes/mac'n-cheesy-ham-soup-recipe/3097

https://www.mamaplusone.com/best-ever-slowcooker-macandcheese-with-crystal-farms/

So I’m sure you’re dying to know how to win the amazing Slow Cooker and free Crystal Farms cheese that Crystal Farms and I are teaming up to give away.

The entry process is crazy-simple. All you need to do is go to the Crystal Farms website and browse their recipes. I highly recommend checking out their Soups, Stews, and Chilis if you’re wanting a warm and cozy recipe, or the Cheese Bakes and Casserole Recipes if you want good, cheesy food to serve a family! Then, you need to come back here, and comment in the comments below with the name of the recipe you want to try and a link to it.

That’s it! As long as you put a valid email address in the email field, and comment with the recipe you want to try from the Crystal Farms website, you’re entered to win!

Disclaimer: Contest is open to valid entries from United States residents. Contest entries must be submitted by October 31 at 11:59pm EST to qualify. No purchase necessary to enter. Email addresses will only be used to notify a winner, unless you specifically check the box saying you’d like to subscribe to my newsletter (yay!)

This post is sponsored by Crystal Farms. While I have been compensated by Crystal Farms for this post, all opinions are my own– I only endorse products I actually use and love on this blog.

43 thoughts on “Best-Ever Slowcooker Mac and Cheese with Crystal Farms”

  4. cheesy bagel pizza bites. I would love to make them myself and not pay the high price of them already made in the freezer section. Plus I would know they are fresh.

    1. I hadn’t tried bell pepper in my mac before, either, but it really added that extra wow factor. You’re right, that chicken Caesar pasta sounds delicious!

  20. Wanted to double check: Step 4 says add “COOKED” pasta. Is that so? Do you put pasta in cooked or uncooked?

    1. Sorry, I’ll edit that to read “uncooked.” The pasta should be straight out of the package when you add it, because the slow cooker will get the liquid inside hot enough to do the cooking process there.

  22. Spicy Skillet Lasagna looks good, can’t wait to try it. Also can not wait to try the Best Ever Slowcooker Mac and Cheese.

  34. So I have a great recipe for homemade mac and cheese, but on the other hand, can one have to many great mac and cheese recipes? Exactly. Looking forward to trying this Jenni. It looks great. Plus I trust the cook. Blessings, Jeannie

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