A Thanksgiving Favorite: A Paula Deen Staple!

My mom and I started a new Thanksgiving side dish a couple years ago that is not completely traditional to your average Thanksgiving dinner.  We made macaroni and cheese. Yes, you heard me! Creamy, cheesy, and fat-laden, Paula Deen's macaroni and cheese is the BEST macaroni and cheese I've ever had.  Hand's down.  It wins in all categories: cheesiness, creaminess, easiness and (unfortunately) probably unhealthiest as well. :/  But we are talking Thanksgiving here.... I'm sorry but that is no day to diet.  If you are only making this ONE day a year, then I think it's perfectly and marvelously allowable!

I LOVE green bean casserole, sweet potatoes and pie, don't get me wrong. But this is the dish I'm looking forward to most this year! It's my all-time favorite!
The only alterations we made to the recipe were that we left out the eggs, based on the reviews.

Creamy Macaroni and Cheese 
adapted from Food Network

Ingredients
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (an 8-ounce box isn't quite 2 cups)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stuck) butter, cut into pieces
2 1/2 cups (about 10 ounces) grated sharp Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Boil the macaroni in a 2 quart saucepan in plenty of water until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, mix butter and cheese. Stir until the cheese melts. In a slow cooker, combine cheese/butter mixture and add the eggs, sour cream, soup, salt, milk, mustard and pepper and stir well. Then add drained macaroni and stir again. Set the slow cooker on low setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.