Jan's macaroni cheese

This was Ben, Graeme and Kip's favourite meal at Jan's house (along with the fresh mealies straight from her garden) and I'll always think of them sitting in her courtyard eating it at the little table and chairs.  In all the years they were growing up whenever I made it I could never get it quite right until I thought to ask Jan exactly what she put in it recently.  The secret to the magic is the chopped green pepper and the mustard!

Ingredients 

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper 

45 g butter 

3 heaped tablespoons plain flour

1 pinch of salt 

1 clove garlic, peeled and finely sliced

1 tsp mustard powder (or 1 tsp of mustard)

1 litre milk

1 large onion finely chopped

1 green pepper, finely diced

some chopped bacon  

600 g dried macaroni 

4 -6 tomatoes 

150 g Cheddar cheese, freshly grated 

100 g Parmesan cheese, freshly grated 

3 big handfuls fresh breadcrumbs 

olive oil

Get a large pan of salted water on the boil. Melt the butter in a saucepan over a low heat, then add the flour and the salt and turn the heat up to medium, stirring all the time, until you get a paste. Add the sliced garlic and the mustard powder and keep cooking and stirring until it’s golden. Slowly whisk in the milk a little at a time to ensure you get a nice smooth sauce. Bring the mixture to the boil, then leave it on a low heat to simmer gently, stirring occasionally. Preheat your oven to 220ºC.

In a small frying pan, gently fry the bacon, onion and the green pepper in a little olive oil until they are soft.

 Add the pasta to the pan of boiling salted water and cook according to the instructions.

Drain the pasta and add it immediately to the sauce. Give it a good stir and take the pan off the heat. 

Stir in most of the grated cheese and the cooked bacon, onion and green pepper. Taste and season. You want it to be slightly too wet because it will thicken up again in the oven, so add a splash of the pasta water if needed.



If you've made your sauce in an ovenproof casserole-type pan, leave everything in there; if not, transfer it to a deep earthenware dish.

Slice the tomatoes quite thickly and season them well with salt and pepper. Lay them on top of the dish and top with the breadcrumbs and the left over cheese.  Bake for 30 minutes in the oven, until golden, bubbling, crispy and delicious.



In Jan's courtyard ....

Kip saying 'tatenda' for his lunch

Xanthe and Kayla waiting for their macaroni cheese

the cook's assistants