Introduction Much like yesterday’s cheddar with whiskey mac and cheese, this mac and cheese recipe has so many dimensions. Cheddar with port wine and fontina blend together in a mac and cheese that is creamy, flavorful, and not your traditional mac and cheese fare. Using Cheese in Mac and Cheese When you take a bite of a piece of cheese, pay attention to when the flavor hits you. Sometimes the cheesiness comes out immediately but fades just as quick. These are what I call opener cheeses, and they’re great to start out a bowl of mac and cheese. Other cheeses take a few seconds to develop, but carry throughout the end of the bite. These are closer cheeses. Well-rounded mac and cheese will make use of both opener and closer flavors. Cheddar with Port Wine It’s almost a shame you have to melt this pretty cheese in order to make a mac and cheese, but then we’d miss out on this great mac and cheese. It’s a white cheese with veins of pinky purple throughout. But the flavor is another level. This is a closer cheese with a wine finish that will pair beautifully with a variety of opener cheeses. Fontina Fontina is a great opener cheese. It has more of a mellow flavor, allowing other cheeses to shine, but it definitely isn’t one to bypass in the cheese section. It’s creamy and melts beautifully with opener flavors that aid in making a beautiful mac and cheese. Rotini in Cheddar with Port wine and Fontina mac and cheese You have to strike the right balance when choosing a pasta vehicle for mac and cheese. If your pasta is too large, your dish will be annoying and difficult to eat. On the other end of the spectrum, If your pasta is too small you run the risk of your dish becoming a soupy mess. Beginner mac and cheese chefs especially should avoid small noodles because they’ll more easily show defects in your sauce. Toppings Good mac and cheese can only go so far, but can be elevated to greatness by adding the right balance of toppings. However, I wanted to highlight the interest in this cheese by topping it with southwest flavored mini croutons. They add interesting texture that you wouldn’t otherwise have in the dish. Reheating Cheddar with port wine and Fontina mac and cheese Mac and cheese is notoriously hard to reheat. You have to eat it that day or you’ll wind up with a gross greasy mess. However, roux based mac and cheese like this recipe reheat so well. A minute or two in the microwave and you’ll have fantastic mac and cheese. In fact, if you give your ingredients a few days to mingle together in the fridge you’ll have even better mac and cheese than the day of. Add a Fork Cheddar with port wine blends beautifully with fontina in a delicious, creamy mac and cheese that is packed with flavor.