Cheddar Pumpkin Mac and Cheese

Cheddar pumpkin mac and cheese is an easy and delicious autumn meal. Option to serve as stovetop macaroni in under 30 minutes, or turn into a crunchy casserole.

My first new pumpkin recipe of the season! At the time of this writing, the start of autumn is 2 days away.

That’s officially when pumpkin is everywhere in drinks and food and life. One of many reasons it is my favorite season.

I promised I would continue making more quick and easy meals, and this is fulfilling that promise.

If you serve as stove-top macaroni you’ll be ready to eat in about 20 to 25 minutes.

And as a way to mix it up, either for leftovers or if you just want to make a crispier version, I’ll tell you how to make it into a casserole.

I’ve been just buried in macaroni lately because of testing this recipe.

I tried a thicker sauce with less milk, I tried adding pumpkin spice (kind of unnecessary but go for it if you want), less pumpkin, more pumpkin, sharp or mild cheddar, parmesan cheese or not. You get the idea.

I ended up preferring the creamier version, with a whole can of pumpkin instead of one cup, and no parmesan.

And definitely use sharp cheddar cheese.

Now if you want to turn into a cheddar pumpkin mac and cheese casserole, just pour into a pan and top with panko.

I like this as a way to re-purpose leftovers, so my casserole used 5 cups macaroni and 1/3 cup panko. (In a 9-inch pan.)

However much macaroni you use, just make sure you have enough bread crumbs to cover the entire dish, and then bake at 400F for about 20 minutes.

I like to add a few minutes under the broiler at the end for an extra crisp. But if you’re anything like me and tend to walk away and forget about things, don’t do that!