the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 21: gluten free mac and cheese.

today im bringing back another recipe from the old days of poverty luxe: good old gluten free mac and cheese. well, not exactly an old recipe because while i have posted about mac and cheese before ive had quite a long time to perfect the recipe even further. also, now that im a lot more experienced with this gluten free thing and its gotten much easier to find decent gluten free products, my (already pretty awesome) mac and cheese recipe is now somehow even better than before (not that i thought that was possible at all). 
generally speaking, i make this mac and cheese on a weekly basis. even though its not exactly a quick dinner and it does get an absurd number of dishes dirty, its the perfect real-food version of comfort food and everybody loves it. i mean, how can you not love mac and cheese? i am only a tiny bit embarrassed to admit that every time i make this, we eat the entire thing without a single morsel left over. but its just that good. we usually pair it with these honey glazed carrots, for what i like to call "everyones favorite dinner night". 
alright, ill stop rambling about the magical mac and cheese and get to the recipe now...
gluten free mac and cheese.  (serves 4)
heres what you need: 
1 12 oz package of gluten free noodles (i like the barilla GF noodles from target because theyre great and also $1.39 a box) 3 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons sweet rice flour (available here but i get mine at the local mexican grocery store for 99 cents a bag) 1 1/2 cups milk approximately 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese (i typically use cheddar, jack, or a blend of the two) salt, pepper, garlic powder, and italian seasoning to taste
heres what you do: 
preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
boil the noodles according to the package directions, drain and put them in a large casserole dish (note: watch your noodles VERY closely and drain them while theyre still a bit firm, gluten free noodles have a tendency to get mushy if you boil them too long). 
next, melt the butter in a small pot over medium/high heat, add the rice flour and stir until a smooth paste is formed (about one minute)
now slowly whisk in the milk, and stir in some salt, black pepper, and garlic powder to your preference.
stir the sauce until it thickens and starts to boil, then remove from heat and stir in about two cups of the shredded cheese. 
pour the sauce over the noodles and mix until everythings evenly coated. top with remaining cheese and italian seasoning. 
bake at 400 until the cheese on top browns (approximately 15 minutes). 
like i said earlier, i usually make this with cheddar and/or jack cheese, BUT this recipe is ALSO great with, well... any cheese that melts. ive made it with everything from smoked gouda to pepper jack to truffle cheddar and every time its been amazing. but, you know, i just really love cheese (i mean, it was the theme of my birthday party). 
what's your favorite kind of cheese? (its hard for me to pick just one, but im a big fan of dill havarti and goat cheese).