{"id":29002,"date":"2023-04-11T08:00:18","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T07:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.janespatisserie.com\/?p=29002"},"modified":"2023-04-11T14:09:41","modified_gmt":"2023-04-11T13:09:41","slug":"macaroni-cheese","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.janespatisserie.com\/2023\/04\/11\/macaroni-cheese\/","title":{"rendered":"Macaroni Cheese!"},"content":{"rendered":"

A deliciously cheesy macaroni cheese with homemade cheese sauce, crispy bacon and a breadcrumb topping… a homemade dinner idea that is easy and heavenly!<\/h2>\n

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There is just something about macaroni cheese… I have always adored it, but how can I not?! Pasta, cheese, bacon, a crispy top and a cheesy sauce… it’s heaven in every bite in my eyes! <\/p>\n

Dinner ideas<\/h3>\n

I absolutely adore cooking, and I thought it was high time I start posting some savoury bits and bobs on my blog. You guys have asked over and over, and when I share anything I cook on social media it gets such a good reaction… so here is another beauty; macaroni cheese. <\/p>\n

Last time I posted my chicken, leek & bacon pie and oh wow… you all LOVED it! It’s an easy and delicious dinner idea, that can be quite versatile. You can serve it lightly with salad, or make it a hearty dish with some roasties and veg, it’s completely up to you, just like with this one. I have a few savoury bakes that are more lunch like, but this can also be a lunch as well if you fancy. <\/p>\n

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Cheese<\/h3>\n

When it comes to something cheese themed, I want to add as much as possible. I do prefer mature cheeses, but that is my choice. I use a mix of mainly mature cheddar cheese, and parmesan in the homemade cheese sauce, and then I use extra mature cheddar cheese on the top. <\/p>\n

I tend to grate the cheddar cheese myself as I find if you buy pre-grated cheese, it has something on the cheese to make it stop sticking and I am not a fan. I also find that cheese is in pieces that are too large compared to grating it yourself. However, the per-grated parmesan is absolutely fine to use. <\/p>\n

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Bacon<\/h3>\n

I will start by saying that bacon is optional in this recipe… if you are vegetarian, or just don’t like or want to use the bacon, you can 100% leave it out. You can replace it with something else such as tomatoes, or even some mushrooms if you fancied – but again, these are optional. <\/p>\n

I use bacon lardons in my cooking most of the time as I like the size of the chunks, and I find if you fry them in a dry pan until crispy and delicious they are heavenly. You can use chopped up bacon instead, or even some cooked ham however instead. <\/p>\n

One great tip for this recipe is if you do like the flavour or bacon, you can use the grease from the pan you fried the bacon in instead of the butter in the sauce of the macaroni cheese to increase the flavour, and have no waste. <\/p>\n

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Pasta<\/h3>\n

As it’s macaroni cheese, I use macaroni pasta… I feel like this is obvious, but at the same time, you can theoretically use any pasta if you just want to make it with whatever you have in the cupboard for ease (sorry if that’s a sin to you!!). <\/p>\n

Some pasta brands take different amounts of time to cook, so a general rule is to boil the pasta for two minutes less than the cooking instructions say. You don’t want the pasta to be too cooked already, as it may end up mushy later on; you want it to be al dente.<\/p>\n

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Sauce<\/h3>\n

The cheese sauce is a key part to this recipe, as you wouldn’t have a macaroni cheese without a cheese sauce. I make my own cheese sauce, and it’s much much easier to make than you think – so please try it. <\/p>\n

I add the butter to the pan, and melt that down (or use bacon grease). Once that’s melted, I add the flour and stir these together. Add the mustard powder and garlic (which are both optional!), and then mix these together. One important bit here is you need to cook this mixture for a little bit, stirring well, so that you cook the flour. If you don’t cook the flour out, the mixture won’t thicken and it might have a weird taste. <\/p>\n

Once the flour is cooked our, you want to add the milk SLOWLY to make the sauce. I add a splash of milk at first, mix in, splash of milk, mix in, etc until the sauce is become looser. Then, still slowly, add and whisk in the rest of the milk. Simmer this, whilst stirring, until starting to thicken. Remove from the heat, add the cheese and salt & pepper and stir until the cheese is melted. <\/p>\n

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Tips & Tricks <\/h3>\n