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Macaroni and cheese

Mac and cheese is the ultimate comfort food, it’s warming, delicious and hearty pasta dish. It can be served as both a side and the main dish.

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Macaroni and cheese
Recipe AuthorAlice Cameron
Date27 February 2019
People4
MachineManual Mode
Preparation time 8 Minutes
Cooking time 1 Hour 1 Minute
Total time 1 Hour 9 Minutes

Macaroni and cheese or Mac and cheese are simple, classic comfort food. It’s pasta with an indulgent cheese sauce, wonderfully warming and hearty. For many of us, it is a childhood favourite. The beauty of mac and cheese is that it’s endlessly customizable; a classic addition is bacon but you can also try adding chicken, or chilli powder for an extra kick or even sprinkling breadcrumbs on top for extra texture.

Our recipe is delicious and really simple! We used mature cheddar and gruyere for the sauce. The mature cheddar gives great flavour and the gruyere simply melts so well it makes the texture of the sauce irresistible! We then baked to create a golden cheese crust, can you think of anything better?

Ingredient list

IngredientQtaUMNotes
Mustard 1TSP (UK)
IngredientQtaUMNotes
Salt 1to taste
Black pepper 1to taste
Cheddar 250g
Gruyere 100g

Step nr: 1 - Boil Water

Ingredient list for step nr: 1

IngredientQtaUMNotes
Water 1liter
Cooking time 10 Minutes
Total time 10 Minutes
Temperature120 Degrees Celsius

Poor water into a large sauce pan and bring to the boil.

Step nr: 2 - Cook pasta

Ingredient list for step nr: 2

IngredientQtaUMNotes
Macaroni 250gram
IngredientQtaUMNotes
Salt 0to taste
Cooking time 10 Minutes
Total time 10 Minutes
Temperature100 Degrees Celsius

When the water is boiling add some salt and the pasta. Cook for 8–10 minutes. Once cooked drain and set the pasta aside.

Step nr: 3 - Preheat oven

TimeNo times for this step
Temperature180 Degrees Celsius
ProgramFan

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.

Step nr: 4 - Melt butter

Ingredient list for step nr: 4

IngredientQtaUMNotes
IngredientQtaUMNotes
Cooking time 5 Minutes
Total time 5 Minutes
Temperature90 Degrees Celsius

In a clean saucepan add the butter and add the flour to make a roux.

Step nr: 5 - Add milk

Ingredient list for step nr: 5

IngredientQtaUMNotes
Whole milk 500milliliter
Cooking time 6 Minutes
Total time 6 Minutes
Temperature90 Degrees Celsius

Gradually add the milk and stir until you have a thick and smooth sauce.

Step nr: 6 - Stir in cheese

Ingredient list for step nr: 6

IngredientQtaUMNotes
Mustard 1teaspoon (UK)
Black pepper 1to taste
IngredientQtaUMNotes
Cheddar 200gram
Gruyere 70gram
Preparation time 3 Minutes
Total time 3 Minutes

Take the pan off the heat and add 200g of cheddar, 70g of gruyere, the black pepper and the mustard then stir until combined.

Step nr: 7 - Add pasta

Ingredient list for step nr: 7

IngredientQtaUMNotes
Macaroni 250gram
Preparation time 3 Minutes
Total time 3 Minutes

Add the pasta to the saucepan and mix well into the sauce.

Step nr: 8 - Add to baking tray

Ingredient list for step nr: 8

IngredientQtaUMNotes
Cheddar 50gram
IngredientQtaUMNotes
Gruyere 30gram
Preparation time 2 Minutes
Total time 2 Minutes

Transfer to a baking tray and sprinkle the rest cheddar and the gruyere on top.

Step nr: 9 - Place in oven

Cooking time 30 Minutes
Total time 30 Minutes
Temperature180 Degrees Celsius
ProgramFan

Bake for 25–30 minutes, or until golden-brown and bubbling. Serve immediately.