These mini mac & cheese bites are ooey-gooey with just a touch of crab for an elegant twist that makes them the perfect party appetizer!

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While mac & cheese may not exactly be part of your healthy eating plan for the New Year, I believe indulgences are an important part of life, so I'm sharing one of my favorite indulgences - Crab Mac & Cheese!! I mean, what's not to like about crab, creamy cheese, and pasta!!

When I was a kid my grandmother used to make homemade mac & cheese for us when we went to visit. Even since then, homemade mac & cheese has always been one of my favorite things. I love to mix it up with different types of cheese and different things added in.

I fashioned these into mini bites so you can either serve them as a party appetizer or if you are in the mood for comfort food you can grab a bunch of them for lunch or dinner. The nice part about making them minis is you can decide how many you want to cook (or reheat) at one time. They are absolute gooey, cheesy perfection!!

Contents:

Why you’ll love this recipe
Ingredient Notes
Tips for making Mac & Cheese Bites
How to make this recipe
Tools you'll want for this recipe
Serving suggestions
Crab Mac & Cheese Bites Recipe

Why you’ll love this recipe

Simple ingredients. Other than the crab meat, the ingredients for this recipe are pretty simple and you may already have them in your pantry and fridge.
Make-ahead option. You can do most of the prep work ahead of time so all you have to do is bake and serve when it's party time!
Great for parties. With a creamy cheese sauce and a touch of crab, these bites are always a hit with party guests.

Ingredient Notes

The full list of ingredients and quantities can be found in the recipe card below.

Small bowls of ingredients for mac and cheese bites

Lump crab meat: You can generally find lump crab meat in the seafood section of the grocery store.
Elbow pasta: While I have tried it, I don't recommend gluten-free pasta for this recipe as the bites won't hold together very well.
Cheese: I generally use a combination of yellow and white cheddar with a little parmesan or asiago thrown in. You could also add some mozzarella, goudo or swiss cheese if you like.
Milk: 2% milk is ideal as it will give the cheese sauce the best consistency.
Bread crumbs: I generally prefer to use panko bread crumbs in most recipes, however, you could also use standard Italian bread crumbs. They are used to help the pasta stick together as it bakes.
Spices: ground nutmeg, sea salt, ground pepper
Pantry staples: all-purpose flour, salted butter

Tips for making Mac & Cheese Bites

Grate the cheese yourself. Bagged shredded cheese often contains anti-caking agents which can prevent the cheese from melting smoothly. I almost always recommend grating cheese yourself for the best results.

Don't skip the breadcrumbs on the bottom of the muffin tins. Adding this layer allows the bites to pop out of the pan effortlessly and helps to hold them together.

How to make this recipe

I love this dish because it can be prepped ahead of time and it gives you an elegant, tasty appetizer that is always a hit with party guests.

Step 1 | Cook the pasta. Boil the pasta in well-salted water, making sure to follow the package directions for timing for al dente pasta. Drain the cooked pasta and set it aside.

Step 2 | Prepare the muffin cups. Spray each muffin cup with non-stick cooking spray and then sprinkle a bit of the panko breadcrumbs in the bottom of each muffin cup.

Step 3 | Make the cheese sauce. This cheese sauce starts with a roux (a mix of flour and melted butter). First, melt the butter and then stir in the flour and cook for about 30 seconds. Then you'll slowly add the milk, stirring constantly until small bubbles form at the edges of the pan. To get a smooth cheese sauce, you want to remove the pan from the heat and add the grated cheese, stirring until the cheese melts and you have a smooth sauce.

Step 4 | Make the bites. You'll add the cooked pasta and the crab meat to the cheese sauce, and stir until everything is coated. Using a small spoon or dough scoop, add the pasta mixture to each muffin cup, repeating until all of the pasta has been used.

Step 5 | Bake the bites. Bake the bites for about 20 minutes, until the edges start to turn golden brown. Remove the pans from the oven and let the bites cool for about 10 minutes before removing them from the muffin pans. Serve immediately.

Make-ahead tip: Since these are cooked in a mini muffin pan they can be pre-assembled, refrigerated for a few hours, and cooked right before the guests arrive. Since the sauce is dairy-based, I don’t recommend freezing these bites.

Tools you'll want for this recipe

Mini Muffin Pans – Mini muffin pans are a super handy kitchen tool. I'd recommend enough to make at least 24 minis. I happen to like the 12 per pan size as they are easy to store and sometimes I only want to make 12 minis!

Serving suggestions

These bites are a great addition to any cocktail party menu. I'd add a nice cheese board, these Baked Arancini, this Caramelized Onion Dip and these Baked Avocado Wontons.

Or check out all of the appetizer recipes for more interesting ideas.

If you want to serve them as more of a light dinner, I'd pair them with a simple green salad or this chopped kale salad for some greens.

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