Baked Mac Cheese

Mac Cheese: A cheesy pasta dish ideal for the little people!

Did you know that Macaroni Cheese dates back to the 1800s?

INGREDIENTS (Serves 4 Little People as a side)

1/4 to 1/2 Panko Japanese Breadcrumbs
10g Parmesan Cheese, finely grated
2 Tsps Olive Oil
150g Dried Macaroni Pasta
90g Shortcut Rindless Bacon, roughly chopped (optional)
1 Cup Milk
30ml Thickened Cream
25g Butter, chopped
3 Tbsps Plain Flour
1 Tsps Dijon or Wholegrain Mustard
1 Cup Tasty Cheese, grated
Sea Salt
Freshly Ground Pepper


METHOD

Preheat oven to 200°C. Grease a 3 cup-capacity baking dish (a small pyrex square dish is perfect).

Combine breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, and 2 teaspoons oil in a bowl. Set aside.

Cook pasta in a saucepan of salted boiling water, following packet directions, until just tender. Drain. Transfer to a bowl.

If adding bacon, do this step now:
Meanwhile, heat frying pan over medium-high heat. Add bacon. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until crisp. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel.

Combine milk and cream in a jug. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add flour. Cook, stirring, with a wooden spoon, for 1 to 2 minutes or until mixture bubbles.

Gradually stir in milk mixture. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until mixture thickens.

Stir in mustard and tasty cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes or until combined and cheese melted.

Add sauce (and bacon) to pasta. Stir to combine. Spoon into prepared dish. Sprinkle with breadcrumb mixture. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Millie & Poppy love their Mac Cheese served with fish fingers. A great no fuss weekend dinner.

Millie: "Mummy this is such a beautiful dinner"

For something different:

For a Seafood pasta bake, replace bacon with a 185g can of tuna or salmon, drained. And throw 2Tbsps of chopped dill into the breadcrumb mixture (Step 2).