That said, salted butter will work if that is all that you have. We like to use unsalted butter for this and then adjust salt to taste when making the sauce. Butter and Flour: It’s the combination of butter and flour that thicken the sauce.Elbow macaroni and shells are great options. Look for pasta that will hold onto the creamy sauce. Pasta: The shape and size are entirely up to you.To make our go-to macaroni and cheese, you will need the following: We’re going to call this our basic mac and cheese - not because it isn’t incredibly delicious, but because it’s the perfect base for other variations.