CREAMY MAC AND CHEESE

I have a baked macaroni and cheese casserole recipe that has been my go to for over a decade now, it's my husband's favorite and he will not let me alter it in any way.  I've always been a baked Mac and cheese fan over creamy but when went on a cruise recently, they had the most amazing creamy Mac and cheese I've ever tasted so I decided we needed a recipe on hand for creamy as well.  This isn't quite as good as the one I remember from the cruise but's it is definitely a close second!

1 pound elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
4oz cream cheese
2 teaspoons onion salt
*4 cups shredded cheese (buy the block and shred yourself!)
salt and pepper

Boil macaroni for 10 minutes and then drain and add back to stockpot.
While macaroni is boiling, prepare your cheese sauce: melt butter over medium high heat and add flour, cook for a couple minutes until the roux darkens slightly (a deep cream/tan color).  Add heavy cream, milk and cream cheese to the roux and whisk until the cream cheese is melted.  Add onion salt and cheese.  Turn off heat and stir until the cheese is melted.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour cheese sauce over macaroni in stock pot and stir well to coat and serve!

*You can use 4 cups of one type of cheese or a combination of 4-5 types of cheeses.  Pictured we used sharp cheddar, mozzarella and Colby jack.
The Mac and cheese on the cruise had crumbled bacon on top so go ahead and add that too if you're so inclined!