Beecher’s Mac & Cheese: Recipe for Seattle’s Ultimate Comfort Food

How good is Beecher’s Mac & Cheese? Ask Oprah. It made her “favorite things” list. Now you can make it at home…the recipe is below!

Kurt Beecher Dammeier didn’t intentionally set out to create the best Mac & Cheese in Seattle…and maybe the world. (Although it’s not-so-modestly branded the “World’s Best.”) He didn’t even set out to start Beecher’s Handmade Cheese in historic Pike Place Market. Nope. His career was going to be in technology. Microsoft, to be exact. He ended up working at his family’s printing business.

But…while he was in college, he took an elective class in cheesemaking. And he remembered growing up with his great-grandfather, Beecher McKenzie, who loved cheese. Especially Stilton. When the family decided to sell the printing business, Kurt figured it was time for Seattle’s first artisanal cheese enterprise. He recruited Brad Sinko, a cheese maker from Oregon; Brad happened to “suddenly” be available after the small, family-owned cheese company he’s been working for was sold to the giant Tillamook. They began looking for a spot in Pike Place Market.

Beecher's Handmade Cheese has a large inventory of its own products, as well as those from other Pacific Northwest artisans. — Beecher’s Handmade Cheese has a large inventory of its own products, as well as those from other Pacific Northwest artisans.

The cheese gods smiled on Kurt. Molbak’s Nursery was moving out of a prime location in the heart of the square. It was available, but the process of becoming part of the historical district was arduous. In the end, he prevailed, and Beecher’s Handmade Cheese opened in 2003. Using only locally-sourced milk and ingredients, along the way the company acquired its own dairy cows to maintain standard quality. The 200 cows live happily on nearby Green Acres Farm, enjoying a hormone- and antibiotic-free diet.

Stand on the corner and watch Beecher's cheese production! — Stand on the corner and watch Beecher’s cheese production!

Visitors can watch the cheesemaking process through the corner windows of the store. There’s a retail shop inside, selling both Beecher’s and other Pacific Northwest artisanal cheeses. There’s also a small cafe. Here’s where you’ll find Beecher’s Mac & Cheese, as well as what I declare the best grilled cheese sandwich on the planet. The signature tomato soup will make you swoon.

Since opening, Beecher’s Handmade Cheese has expanded to the Flatiron District in New York City. You’ll find the ever-expanding cheese varieties–including the original Flagship–at fine groceries…and Costco, if you’re lucky. (You can sometimes find the Mac & Cheese in the frozen section, too.) But, really, the recipe is super-easy. Make it for yourself…you’ll never return to that “blue box” again.

Beecher’s is a scrumptious success story. Only four years after opening, they won the
Best Cheddar Cheese award from the American Cheese Society. The Marco Polo cheese won in 2008. Laura Werlin, cheese expert and author of multiple cheese cookbooks, said, “Flagship is everything a cheddar should be…and more.”

Beecher’s Mac & Cheese Recipe: Serves 4 as a side dish

Ingredients:

6 ounces penne pasta
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter

2 Tablespoons + 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour

1-1/2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

pinch garlic powder

8 ounces Beecher’s Flagship cheese, grated (2 cups) divided

2 ounces Just Jack cheese, grated

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Cook penne pasta 2 minutes less than package directions. Rinse in cold water, set aside.

3. Melt butter in a heavy-bottom saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour, then continue to whisk and cook for 2 minutes. Slowly add milk, continuing to whisk. Cook until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Stir frequently. Remove from heat.

4. Add 1-3/4 Flagship and 1/4 cup Just Jack cheeses, salt, 1/4 teaspoon chili powder, and garlic powder to the sauce. Stir until cheese is melted and all ingredients are combined, about 3 minutes.

5. Combine pasta and sauce in a large bowl. Mix carefully. Scrape into an 8-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and chili powder.

6. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.