This TikTok mac and cheese fits 2½ pounds of cheese in one 9-by-13 pan: How to make Tini Younger’s version for fall

TikTok chef Tini Younger’s viral mac and cheese packs 2 1/2 pounds of shredded mozzarella, Colby Jack and cheddar into a single 9-by-13-inch baking dish. The cheese is layered with cavatappi pasta and a homemade cream sauce.

Younger, a Georgia-based culinary school graduate known online as “Chef Tini,” published the recipe on her Substack on Sept. 22, 2024. Her video tutorial took off that year and set off debate over just how much cheese one dish can hold.

She makes it with corkscrew-shaped cavatappi, never classic elbow macaroni. As cooler weather brings baked comfort food back into rotation, it’s a dish built for a full table.

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What do you need to make Tini Younger’s TikTok mac and cheese?

The 2 1/2 pounds of cheese is split in two. Half melts into the sauce and the other half goes between layers of pasta. The spice blend is divided the same way, with some going into the base of the sauce and the rest added later.

Here’s the full ingredient list:

• 1 pound cavatappi pasta
• 16 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 16 ounces Colby Jack cheese, shredded
• 8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 can evaporated milk (Younger uses Carnation)
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

How do you make Tini Younger’s mac and cheese in a 9-by-13 pan?

The dish comes together in about an hour, most of it on the stove. The sauce starts as a roux, a cooked paste of butter and flour that thickens the milk and cream so the cheese melts smoothly.

1. Heat the oven to 350 F and grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
2. Boil the cavatappi according to the package directions, then drain it.
3. Toss the three cheeses together and split the mix evenly between two bowls.
4. Stir the garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt and pepper together, then divide that blend in half as well.
5. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the flour and half the seasoning, and stir for 3 to 5 minutes until it forms a paste.
6. Whisk in the evaporated milk until thick. Then add the cream and the remaining seasoning, followed by the Dijon mustard.
7. Add one bowl of cheese a handful at a time, letting each addition melt before adding the next.
8. Fold the pasta into the sauce until every piece is coated.
9. Spread a layer of sauced pasta in the dish, top it with some of the reserved cheese, and repeat until both are used up.
10. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until bubbly. Finish under the broiler for about 2 minutes to brown the top.

Keep an eye on it at the end, since a broiler can take cheese from golden to burned in seconds.

Who is Tini Younger, the TikTok chef behind the viral mac and cheese?

Tineke Younger, 25, trained in culinary school and worked in restaurant kitchens before launching her TikTok account in 2020. Her videos focus on affordable comfort food, from hot-honey chicken tenders to deep-fried deviled eggs and roasted tomato soup.

She drew national attention in 2023 as a contestant on Gordon Ramsay’s Fox cooking competition “Next Level Chef.” The mac and cheese tutorial she posted after the show has since topped 100 million views, according to her publisher.

Time named her one of its 100 most influential creators of 2026. She has said her favorite dishes to make are ones she’s never tried, because each new recipe teaches her something.

Her first cookbook, “Today We Are Cooking ...: Recipes That Teach You to Think Like a Chef,” comes out Nov. 3 from Clarkson Potter. It has more than 100 recipes, including the viral mac and cheese and a chapter of holiday dishes.