Culture

This week we pay homage to my lifelong friend, cheese. When I was a young, spritely thing, Saturday lunchtime saw a steady stream of cheese melts flow from oven to table (not literally, mind you). I stuck with the classic cheese and oregano combination, while my mother would get all inventive with sliced beetroot and spring onions. With the advent of flatting came the discovery that I could eat whatever I liked, whenever I liked – no longer did I hear cries of “Why are you eating that, I am about to serve dinner” – including cheese toasties at 2am and whole wheels of brie in one sitting (double cream, please). This recipe reinvents classic macaroni cheese, turning it into a grown-up party food – well, sort of. Salty, smoky pancetta acts as a crispy case, and panko breadcrumbs add crunch. Too good.
Recipe adapted from Chow.com

Ingredients

250g dried macaroni elbows
1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs 3 tbs butter
2 tbs white flour
1 1/4 cups milk
2 cups grated cheese –
edam, cheddar, mozzarella or a combination
(mozzarella has wonderful melting properties but is fairly mild in flavour;
you could also throw handful of parmesan into the mix for extra zing)
2 tsp Dijon mustard (optional) Salt and pepper
12 thin circular slices pancetta

Method

01 | Fill a large pot with water. Add a pinch of salt and a splash of oil. Bring to the boil and add the macaroni elbows. Cook for 8 –10 minutes, or until firm to the bite. Drain.

02 | Add the panko breadcrumbs to a medium-hot saucepan and cook until golden, stirring constantly.

03 | Heat the butter in a large saucepan over a low-medium heat until it starts to foam. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Cook for two minutes.

04 | Very slowly add the milk to the thickened flour, whisking as you go. Once you have added all of the milk, continue cooking until the sauce is smooth and thick. This will take about five minutes.

05 | Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add the grated cheese. Whisk until the cheese has melted. Add the mustard and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.

06 | Fold the drained pasta through the cheese sauce (if you’re being traditional, you could bake this mixture in a large baking dish, with a generous sprinkling of grated cheese on top, for 20 minutes at 190°C).

07 | Press the pancetta slices into the wells of a well-greased muffin pan, covering the bottoms and sides as evenly as possible. Divide the macaroni cheese between the wells and top with the toasted panko breadcrumbs. Bake at 190°C for about 30 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and the macaroni cheese is bubbling.

08 | Remove the muffin tray from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Use a knife to loosen the pancetta macaroni cups, then carefully remove them from the pan. Serve with a salad.

Photo courtesy James Stringer