Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients

1. Macaroni 250g
2. Butter 25g
3. Milk 250mL
4. Cream 250mL
5. Sharp Cheddar cheese 250 gr
6. Gruyere cheese 180g
7. Bacon 150g
8. Breadcrumbs 50g
9. Nutmeg 2g
10. Grated Parmesan 120g
11. Salt and pepper
    
12. Method
13. Preparation Duration 2 minutes
14. Preheat the oven to 190°C
15. Cut the bacon

• Cooking Duration 1 hour

1. Cook the pasta in rapidly boiling salted water until tender, then drain and set aside
2. Melt the butter in a pan and add the flour. Stir it over medium heat until it resembles wet sand, then whisk in the milk and cook until thickened
3. Add the Cheddar and the Gruyere cheese and mix it well, until the cheese melted
4. Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste
5. Stir in the pasta and spoon into a baking dish
6. In a pan, fry the bacon until it becomes crispy, then transfer it to a paper towel in order for the grease to be absorbed
7. Combine the breadcrumbs, Parmesan and the bacon then sprinkle it on top of the pasta
8. Bake in the oven at 190°C for 30 minutes, until the breadcrumbs are golden

• Plating

1. Cut into portions and serve on a pre-warmed plate. Garnish as desired

• Tips:
• Sometimes when in a hurry, I just make the cheese sauce, stir in the pasta and I serve it right away, without baking it in the oven. It is also very delicious and it can save you a lot of time. If I serve it this way, I make sure that the pasta is cooked to a perfect al dente and that the sauce has the perfect consistency, flour perfectly cooked through.
• If you don’t like bacon, it can easily be replaced with dried herbs mixed in the breadcrumbs with the parmesan.
• Fun facts:
• The first casserole dished originate from Italy and England and it goes back as far as the 14^th century. The earliest recipes of Macaroni and Cheese (also known as Mac&Cheese) date back to 1769 and it is from Northern Europe, but some food historians believe it was mentioned before in a cookbook from the 13^th century.
• The dish made its way to the United States, thanks to Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) who brought back the noodle recipes and pasta machine from Europe.