Creamy, rich, super cheesy and flavorful white cheddar mac and cheese just like Panera Bread’s popular side dish! This dish is from-scratch and made in less than 20 minutes.
*Recipe and post has been edited for clarity! Thanks, y’all!*
Panera Bread has been going through some things.
Including taking away the beloved Chipotle Chicken Panini.
Nothing is safe. Including their macaroni and cheese. I am simply waiting for the day it disappears or ends up completely changed around….looking at you ‘chipotle chicken melt’. You ain’t no chipotle chicken panini. You are an impostor.
Which is why I like to take up the copycat recipes of my favorites. Especially Panera Bread’s mac and cheese. The chipotle chicken panini/mac and cheese Pick Two combo was my life at Panera, y’all.
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I made sure to make this recipe the creamiest, cheesiest, ooey-gooey, most comforting stove top mac and cheese I could possibly make, and I really wanted to make sure that when you tried this recipe, that you would be completely and utterly satisfied by it’s amazing similarity to Panera Bread’s mac.
Most copycats use shells I noticed. I do not; in fact I found this pasta type by accident, and what a happy accident it was. It’s called pipe rigate, and it looked really small in the box but it puffed up. At first I was like ‘oh no, it’s going to be too big to be a good ‘macaroni and cheese’ sized pasta, but noooo!
It’s perfect! Each shell is a medium sized, sort of mix between elbow and ‘shell’ pasta shapes, with a big mouth to hold lots of creamy cheese sauce.
I mean, just full of cheese.
This might go into my basics just because it’s so easy to make. Stove top mac: the bechamel, simple spices, including cayenne and mustard powder, although if you want to go with the original Panera Bread mac and cheese recipe, use a bit of Dijon and hot sauce (people tend to say they can be overwhelming, which is why I prefer using the spices), lots of freshly grated cheese, and a pasta that holds all that cheese sauce.
I mean, it’s really the best of a basic recipe, and Panera has made serious bank off of it.
Freshly grate a block of white extra sharp Vermont cheddar. Do it by hand, do it by food processor, just do it. Do not use the pre-shredded stuff in the bag; not only does the cellulose it’s dusted with make it harder to melt, but the cellulose can make your cheese sauce grainy.
Also, I do suggest whole milk or even heavy cream (or half and half) for a rich cheese sauce. Don’t skimp out and get skim. You will end up with grainy sauce, trust me. Something to do with fat in the milk and science. It’s a science.
So how do I make sure my mac and cheese comes out perfect every time?
When making your bechamel, make sure you are whisking constantly, mixing the flour with the fat well and cooking out the raw flour and making sure to get in those corners of the pot so nothing is missing (the flour in the corners can burn). Then slowly add your cold milk, whisking like a crazy person, to ensure that all the flour is being well incorporated and whisking while the bechamel thickens to make sure it doesn’t burn or clump at the bottom. You also want to make sure you don’t boil the bechamel, once the milk is incorporated you need to turn the heat to medium-low so your sauce doesn’t clump up, burn, or become grainy. You are looking for a thickened sauce, it’ll coat the back of a spoon when it’s ready.
As you add your cheese, make sure that the heat is OFF! Super important, y’all. If your heat is too hot, it will separate your cheese, making your sauce clumpy, grainy, oily; so keeping the heat off while adding the cheese to the hot bechamel sauce (turning it into a mornay! Hey, fancy culinary terms!) makes sure that the sauce stays smooth.
Also, make sure your cheese isn’t pre-shredded. The dust coating the shredded cheese will make the melting process difficult, which will make you want to turn the heat back on, and if you’re not careful, you can go from not melting to separating in a second.
A bit of American cheese is added. Sharp cheeses and harder cheeses tend to separate easily, they just aren’t the best of melters. Ones like American cheese (which is made with emulsifiers to ensure a smooth melting process) or even velvetta helps immensely. If you are uncomfortable with using American or Velveeta, other great melting cheeses to use are Gruyere, a mild white cheddar, and Monterey Jack. These are better at melting and add more flavor!
If you aren’t comfortable creating a mornay sauce (bechamel with cheese), try using the method I used in my creamy stove top mac and cheese. It’s an easy one pot mac and cheese recipe without using a bechamel, and will create a creamy, rich cheese sauce for your mac. IF you’re a beginner, this recipe would be best to try out, just use the same cheese and spice from this Panera Bread copycat.
You can also exchange most or all of the milk in this recipe with evaporated milk, using a small cornstarch slurry to make a thickener, like in my everything cheese sauce. This will give you a thick and creamy cheese sauce as well.
Want more comfort food recipes? check out:
Chipotle Chicken Panini (Panera Bread Copycat)
Gentleman Jack Bacon Mac and Cheese
Buttermilk Southern Fried Chicken
Chicken and Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat)
Broccoli Cheddar Soup (Panera Bread Copycat)
Don’t forget to PIN this Panera Bread Mac and cheese recipe!
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Creamy White Cheddar Mac and Cheese (Panera Bread Copycat)
Ingredients
- 16 oz uncooked pasta of your choice
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 3 cups whole milk or half and half, cold
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
- 1/2 tsp mustard powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 8 oz block extra sharp white cheddar cheese, grated
- 4 oz block white American cheese (or other mild melting cheese like white cheddar), grated
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions in a large pot with well salted water.
While Pasta is Cooking
- In a medium sized saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. When melted, whisk in flour and cook for 2-3 minutes, whisking constantly to cook out the raw flour.
- Begin splashing in milk, small amounts at a time, whisking well. It will seize up, don't panic. Continue pouring milk in small amounts, constantly whisking to ensure smoothness, until the mixture is no longer a paste-like consistency but more like a soupy liquid. Turn heat to medium-low, whisking consistently and getting into the corners (to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom and burns) until bechamel becomes thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in spices.
- Stir in cheeses, a small handful at a time, whisking in well until the cheese melts completely. Continue until all cheese is incorporated. Taste, and season til you're satisfied.
- Drain pasta when ready and add back into the large pot; pour cheese sauce over pasta and stir to coat each piece of pasta well. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 490
I made a triple batch of this today for my son’s 5th birthday party. Kids and adults alike enjoyed. After cooking I kept it warm in the crock pot and Instant pot for about an hour before it was time to serve. It thickened up a bit and changed texture slightly but it was still awesome.
I’m so glad you liked it and everyone enjoyed the recipe! Quick tip, if the sauce became gloopy, stir in a splash of milk. Or if it became a little grainy, that means it was held on a heat that was too high. To avoid that, keep the temperature as low as possible, and stir it occasionally so the sauce never gets too hot in one spot. Thanks for your review!
Hi your written instructions state to use 2 blocks of cheddar but the recipe calls for 1 block of white cheddar and 4 oz white American. Which one to use? Thanks!
Hi! Many people were having issues melting down the sharp cheddars by themselves as the harder and sharper a cheese is, the easier it is to split and turn grainy while melting. I instead replaced it in the recipe with a bit of American cheese, which aids in easy emulsification between the cheese and the bechamel sauce because it itself is made to be a “melting” cheese.
I will edit my post writing to reflect the edited recipe, but if you are confident in your cheese sauce making abilities I suggest you go for both the cheddars because they’re really delicious!
You could also go strictly by the recipe, it’s garnered a lot of great results for those who were having trouble with the previous version.
You could also add any other cheese you wanted, really, but that’s completely up to you!
I notice that the instructions state “serve immediately”, would I be able to mak this for a family dinner that is being hosted at another home ? What would be a good way to make sure it doesn’t separate? Is there a safe way to reheat or warm it up if need be?
Hi! Yes, you can store it in your normal air tight containers, then reheat it on the stove gently over low heat with a hearty splash of milk or cream to make sure the cheese doesn’t separate and the sauce stays at the desired consistency. Hope that helps!
Can I transfer this recipe after I cook it into a crockpot to keep warm for a party?
To make sure the cheese sauce doesn’t separate it mustn’t get too hot. If you keep the crockpot on warm (not low or high) and give it a stir occasionally, I don’t see why not!
I’ve admittedly never had the Panera mac and cheese, but this looks SO GOOD. We don’t eat a lot of pasta at home, but I am completely unable to resist a good, cheesy bowl of mac and cheese!
Neither am I, girl! Give me a bowl of mac and cheese any day!
This Mac + Cheese is a MUST TRY! Wow. It looks so creamy and flavorful! saving this for later!
Thanks hon!
Oh man, I don’t have Panera a whole lot, but if I do, chances are this is what I am going to get! Great to see this copycat recipe! Their Mac and cheese is so damn creamy!
I know right? It’s addictive almost, haha. Panera better not give up their Mac and cheese!
I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect mac and cheese recipe and this one sounds like I just found it! That sauce is so creamy – I must try this!
Try it, it’s SUPER creamy and so good!
I love Panera’s mac and cheese! This looks delicious and can’t wait to try!
Mmmm… Looks delicious. I’m going cook this for my family tonight. Hope it turns out well. Thanks for sharing ..
Oh my, that is a lot of cheesy goodness right there! Great idea to recreate your restaurant favorites…why is it they always remove the best recipes from the menu?!?!
Oh I love Panera’s mac-n-cheese. Must try this
I need to pass this recipe on to my youngest daughter. Panera Mac & Cheese is one of her favorite things!
Yes! I need this recipe! I love Panera, especially this mac and cheese, but I can’t get it here in London. Thanks for coming up with this recipe <3