Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:
8 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1 pound elbow macaroni
1 garlic clove,minced
1 tsp dry mustard, dissolved in 1 tsp water
1/4 cayenne pepper
6 tbsp all purpose flour
3 1/2 cups whole milk
1 3/4 cups chicken stock
1 pound Colby cheese. shredded about 4 cups
8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, shredded about 2 cups
pepper

Directions:
1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Melt 2 tbsp of the butter and toss with the breadcrumbs.
2. Bring 4 quarts water to a boil in a large pot for the macaroni. Stir in 1 tbsp salt and the macaroni and cook until almost tender but still firm to the bite. Drain the macaroni and leave it in the colander.
3. Wipe the pot dry, add the remaining 6 tbsp cutter, and melt over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, mustard mixture, and cayenne,. Cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
4. Stir in the flour and cook until golden, and about 1 minute. Slowly whist in the milk and broth,. Bring to a simmer, cook whisking often until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 6 minutes.
5 Off the heat, whisk in the Colby and cheddar until completely melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the drained macaroni breaking up an clumps, until well combined.
6. Pour into a 9 by 13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with the breadcrumbs. Bake until golden and bubbling around the edges, 25 to 30 minutes before serving.

I got this recipe from the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

I halved this recipe for my family and it was plenty for us. I thought the breadcrumbs were a little too much though, so I would probably 1/4 the amount of those. I also left out the cayenne pepper, because we didn't have any.