Shoestring Macaroni Cheese – doubt you need a recipe, but here is one anyway

Tonight I wanted something easy for tea, and macaroni cheese was perfect. It is so simple yet cheap and delicious, total comfort food on a rainy Autumn day.

Shoestring Macaroni Cheese

Here is the recipe I use for macaroni cheese, although I vary it by adding bacon, mushrooms, leeks, or sometimes all three:

Ingredients

To serve 4

250g macaroni
2 heaped dessertspoons marg or butter
2 heaped dessertspoons plain flour
500ml milk
half tsp mustard powder or made up mustard
150g cheddar, grated
Lots of ground pepper and salt to taste

Method

Cook the macaroni in plenty of boiling salted water and, whilst it is cooking, make the sauce. Melt the margarine or butter, then add the flour and mustard and cook gently for a minute or so. Whisk in the milk and and bring to the boil, stirring all the time so that it doesn’t catch. Lower the heat and stir until thickened. Add the grated cheese, then season with the salt and pepper to taste. Drain the macaroni and stir in most of the cheese, leaving some to sprinkle on the top. Pop under a preheated grill for 5 minutes until it turns golden and bubbly. Serve straight away with a green salad or some vegetables.

We had runner beans from the garden with our macaroni cheese as we still have plenty coming through.

For more favourite frugal recipes, see here.