Macaroni Cheese

Macaroni Cheese, or Mac 'n' Cheese as it now seems to be known everywhere, is the king of comfort food. What originated as a simple pasta and cheese sauce recipe has now evolved into dozens of variations on the theme.

Our recipe uses a classic combination of Cheddar, Gruyere and Parmesan for the right balance of texture and flavour, and a little Stilton for depth.

 

Preparation time 20 mins - Cooking time 1 hour - Serves 8

Ingredients

350g of macaroni pasta                           50g of butter

50g of flour                                               800ml of whole milk

80ml of double cream                              150g of Montgomery’s Cheddar

100g of Gruyere                                       50g of Colston Bassett Stilton

1 tbsp of Dijon mustard                            1/2 tsp white pepper

50g of Parmesan                                      50g of Panko breadcrumbs

 

Method

1. Weigh out and grate all the cheese, keeping the Parmesan separate – you’ll use half in the sauce, and half as a topping. The rest can be mixed together.
2. Measure out the rest of the ingredients and set to one side.
3. Bring a large pan of well salted water to the boil and add the pasta. Cook the pasta for 3 minutes less than the instructions – you want the pasta to be just under al dente. Drain and set to one side.
4. Now make the bechamel sauce, which is simply a white sauce made with milk and a roux (flour and butter). Gently melt the butter in a saucepan, then add the flour and stir the mixture together until it begins to turn in colour slightly. Add the milk slowly, a little at a time, continually stirring to avoid the mixture going lumpy. A whisk is the best thing to use for this.
5. Continue to cook the sauce for another couple of minutes, until it is thick and bubbly. Don’t worry if it seems a bit thin at this point as it will thicken considerably once the cheese is added.
6. You’re now ready to add the cheese. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the grated cheese mixture to the hot pan and stir until it has completely melted and you have a uniform, thick, cheesy sauce. Return the pan to the heat briefly if you need to, to help melt the cheese. Once you have a complete cheese sauce, stir through the cream and the mustard, and add the pepper.
7. Add the partially cooked pasta to the cheese sauce and stir it well, ensuring it is all well coated.
8. In a separate bowl, mix the leftover Parmesan and the breadcrumbs. Transfer the pasta mixture to a deep baking dish, smooth it out and top with the breadcrumb mix.
9. Pop your finished macaroni cheese into a 180° oven and bake until it is golden brown on top – around 30 minutes.
10. Once it’s cooked, remove it from the oven and leave to rest for 10 minutes. You should eat it whichever way you like, but we like to serve it with a crisp green salad.