Best ever macaroni cheese recipe

This perfect macaroni cheese recipe comes with a creamy cheese sauce, a hint of mustard and uses leftover French stick for its crunchy topping

Prep:10 mins
Cook:40 mins

Serves 4
Easy

Nutrition per serving

kcal 860
fat 42g
saturates 25g
carbs 88g
sugars 9g
fibre 0g
protein 38g
salt 1.92g

Ingredients

50g baguette, cut into small chunks
2 tbsp butter, plus 1 tbsp melted
350g spiral or other short pasta
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp English mustard powder
3 tbsp plain flour
500ml whole milk
250g mature cheddar, grated
50g parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), grated

Tip

Use up blue cheese
Crumble 50g Stilton, Dolcelatte or Roquefort into the sauce, instead of the Parmesan. Spoon the pasta into the dish, then top with 4 trimmed field mushrooms, gills facing upwards, instead of the crumbs. Drizzle with a little oil, season, then top with a little more blue cheese. Bake as before.Next level macaroni cheese recipe

If you enjoyed this, now check out our next level mac 'n' cheese with Marmite recipe.

Method

Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Spread the chunks of bread over a baking sheet, drizzle with the melted butter and season. Bake for 6 mins until crisp, then set aside.
Boil the pasta for 2 mins less than stated on the pack. Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a saucepan. Add the garlic and mustard, cook for 1 min, then stir in the flour. Cook for 1 min more, then gradually whisk in the milk until you have a lump-free sauce. Simmer for 5 mins, whisking constantly until thickened. Take off the heat, then stir in all the cheddar and half the Parmesan.
Stir the pasta and some seasoning into the cheesy sauce, then tip into a large ovenproof dish, or 4 individual dishes. Scatter over the bread and remaining Parmesan, then bake for 20 mins until crisp and golden. Can be frozen before baking – defrost thoroughly before cooking.