Comfort Food! Magnificent Mac 'N' Cheese!

Hey from EL The Cook!

As the weekend approaches we fall back on our comfort food section which gives you a taste of food we all love..

This time we cook a magnificent Mac 'n' Cheese, one of America's favourite comfort foods!

Super quick and loaded with bags of flavour, Mac 'n' Cheese is an almost always an amazing dinner!

The problem often is that the sauce turns gluggy and often tastes bad when it gets cold, getting discouraging to make!

Our recipe concentrates on getting a perfect sauce and leave the macaroni to the companies who have made their millions by perfecting the pasta! 

We show you the surprising way to get a near perfect Mac 'n' Cheese every time! 

INGREDIENTS: ( Makes 8 Magnificent Servings! )

Cooking Time :  
 20 minutes ( 10 minutes prep + 10 minutes stove top)

• 500 gm macaroni from a packet
• 30 gm plain flour
• 30 gm butter
• 500ml whole milk
• 500 ml cream
• 250gm finely grated cheddar
• 50 gm mascarpone cheese
• 3 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter)
• 50 gm button mushrooms
• 1 red onion, ground to paste
• 1 garlic clove, ground to a paste
• 50 gm grated parmesan
• Salt and pepper to taste

KITCHEN EQUIPMENT:

• A large bowl
• Heavy bottomed vessel
• Whisk
• Standard cup measure
• Spatula
• Chefs Knife
• 3 small bowls

METHOD:

• Bring 5L salted water (should taste like sea water!) to a boil over high heat. Add macaroni and cook until almost al dente, about 7 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt butter in large pan over a medium heat. Add flour and whisk to cook out roux for 3-4mins. (What is a roux? Find out here.)Gradually add cold milk while whisking, allowing mixture to come to a boil. Add cream and cheese and stir to combine.

• When pasta is cooked, drain and add to cheese sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, melt clarified butter in a frypan over medium heat. Add button mushrooms and fry until golden. Add shallot and garlic and cook until fragrant. Remove from heat and stir into macaroni mixture with grated parmesan.
• Plate up by adding a layer of parmesan to the bottom of the plate, then add a spoonful of Mac'N'Cheese and add another layer parmesan, so you get a balanced taste of all the ingredients! 

Enjoy while piping hot!

Have a lovely pre-weekend folks!