Baked Macaroni and Cheese (Simon's)

Tempo

50 min

Picante

Dificuldade

Médio

Rende

6porções

Ingredientes

600 ml

milk (leite integral)

bay leaves (folhas de louro)

500 g

tube pasta — elbow (cotovelo) or penne

55 g

butter (split: 45 g for sauce, 10 g for greasing dish)

3 tbsp

flour (farinha de trigo)

300 g

grated cheese — cheddar, Emmental, or mix (ralado)

100 g

grated Parmesan (parmesão ralado)

Salt, black pepper

100 g

breadcrumbs (farinha de rosca panko-style ideal)

01**Infuse milk.** Heat milk + bay leaves in saucepan over medium-low. When small bubbles appear at edges (~5 min), turn off; let stand 10 min.
02**Cook pasta.** Boil large pot of salted water. Cook pasta to 1-2 minutes *under* al dente — it will finish in the oven. Drain; rinse briefly to stop cooking; tip into a large bowl.
03**Roux.** Melt 45 g butter over medium-low. Add flour; cook stirring **5 min** until biscuit-coloured (light brown).
04**Béchamel.** Remove bay leaves from milk. Whisk milk into roux a ladleful at a time, smoothing each addition. Continue until all milk is in and sauce is thick + smooth.
05**Cheese sauce.** Off heat, stir in the 300 g cheddar/Emmental until melted.
06**Combine.** Pour cheese sauce over pasta. Toss in Parmesan. Salt + pepper.
07**Assemble.** Grease a 23 × 33 cm baking dish with the remaining 10 g butter. Tip pasta in. Top liberally with breadcrumbs.
08**Bake** 205°C convection for **15-20 min**, until bubbling and breadcrumbs are deeply golden.

The real thing — bay-infused milk, proper roux, double cheese, breadcrumb top. Easily varied with bacon/blue cheese/Gouda.

Heat: 0/5.

Bacon: ¾ cup crisp-cooked thick bacon/pancetta cubes mixed in before baking.
Blue cheese: swap 100 g of cheddar for gorgonzola.
Smoky: swap 100 g of cheddar for smoked Gouda.
Mascarpone: replace 50 g cheddar with mascarpone for silkier texture.

Bay infusion: non-negotiable. The bay flavour is subtle but distinctive.
Pasta undercook is critical — it will absorb sauce and finish in the oven. Skip this and you get mush.
Make-ahead: assemble through step 7, refrigerate up to 24 hr; bring to room temp before baking.
Freezer: freeze unbaked. Defrost overnight; bake from defrosted (might need +5 min).
Cheddar in BR: Tirolez or Polenghi mature, or imported. Avoid the bright-orange American type.