MACNIFICENT MAC & CHEESE WITH FRIED BREADCRUMBS
‘Return of the mac’……OK so I was going to say a load of cheesy (Badoombumcha) song lyrics with mac in the title but I cant actually think of any! Moving on..Who wants a ridonculously cheesy mac and cheese recipe that is gluten free and no one will actually be able to tell?? You do don’t you otherwise you wouldn’t have come to my page :)
Ok so the secret is ……..sooo much cheese! And when I mean sooo much cheese I mean like two whole blocks of cheese. Yep you heard it right, this is not a healthy midweek dinner this is definitely a comfort dish which you can make a day before and just shove in the oven when your hungover and CBA to cook. I used Applewood smoked cheese and red leicester as it gives a lovely smokiness to the dish but you can add whatever cheese you like.
Ingredients
150g Salted butter
150g Plain gf flour
1 litre of milk
2 bayleafs
1 large red onion finely diced
1 tsp chopped thyme
1 heaped tsp dijon mustard
250g Red Leicester grated
250g Applewood smoked cheese grated
600g dried macaroni pasta
1tsp smoked paprika
5 slices of white gluten free bread
Garlic oil
knob of salted butter
Method
Start by heating the milk on a medium heat and add the bayleaf to infuse. Once the milk starts to boil turn it off and let it sit until you need it. Melt the salted butter in a large saucepan and then add the onion and chopped thyme. Cook for a minute and then add the flour. Stir for a couple of minutes until the flour is cooked out and then add the milk slowly bit by bit whisking to make sure there are no lumps. Make sure the heat is on low during this point. Once all the milk is in the roux it should be a thick consistent. Take off the heat and make sure there are no lumps and then add a heaped tsp of Dijon mustard and two thirds of the cheese, salt and pepper.
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the macaroni for half the cooking time the packet says. I used tiny macaroni so I only cooked for 1.5 minutes then as soon as the time is up, drain then add into the sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning if it needs it then add your macaroni to a baking dish and then add the remaining cheese on top. Bake for 15 minutes on 190c until the mac and cheese and bubbling and the cheese is melted and oozing.
Whilst the mac is doing its thing..toast your bread and then blitz until it forms breadcrumbs. In a pan heat the butter and a glug of olive oil and fry the breadcrumbs until crispy. Add a little sea salt and then top your mac and cheese. It will add an amazing crunch to your pasta.
I served mine with a dollop of pesto on the top and some homemade garlic bread! Delish x
