In my vicarious election excitement yesterday, I declared Kraft Mac and Cheese to be one of my favourite things to come out of the US. Sadly, I rarely get to indulge in this delicious instant pasta treat, and being as Batchelors pasta and sauce just doesn’t compare, I often make my very own Mac and Cheese.
Since I am bothering to actually make the sauce, as opposed to adding a sachet of it to my cooked pasta (I personally believe it to be magic that you can get such a yummy cheese sauce out of that little sachet of powder, and do not have the powers to recreate it’s wizardry) I like to throw in some extras such as bacon and leeks, which taste wonderful with cheese. I know this sort of distracts from the dishes simplicity, and essentially turns it into a different dish entirely, but hey, it tastes good, and that’s all that’s important in my eyes.
Ingredients (serves 4)
300g dried macaroni
25g butter
25g plain flour
1pt milk
6 rashers of streaky bacon
1 leek finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
300g mature cheddar cheese grated
salt/pepper
Directions
Boil pasta according to packet instructions, drain, return to pan and cover with lid.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan melt butter and fry bacon, leek and garlic on a low heat, for around 10 minutes until golden brown.
Stir in flour to make a paste and fry for one minute. Pour in milk and whisk continuously until sauce begins to boil and thicken.
Remove from the heat and stir in 200g of the cheese until it melts. Season with salt and pepper.
Pour sauce over pasta and stir until pasta is fully coated. Transfer to a baking dish, top with cheese and bake at 200C/Gas Mark 6 for 20 mins until the cheese is golden and sauce is bubbling round the edges.
Serve with green salad and a slice of garlic bread if you are feeling extra hungry!