MACARRONS AMB BEIXAMEL - MACARONI WITH BECHAMEL SAUCE

This is at the top of my list of comfort foods. I grew up with it in Catalonia and it was one of my favourite Sunday lunch recipes. Macaroni with a ragu sauce and then covered with Bechamel sauce (white sauce) and grated Manchego cheese and put in the oven for about 30 minutes. Here is a recipe for the ragu, today I used veal and pork mince and 6 rashes of bacon. It was soooo yummy! The traditional recipe, however, is done is only pork mince and a sofrito of tomato passata. Nice and simple.

Ingredients

500g macaroni or penne rigatto

1 quantity ragu sauce

70g grated Manchego or Parmesan or Pecorino cheese

10g butter, extra

Bechamel sauce (TM recipe)

40 g unsalted butter

40 g of flour

500 g of milk

½ teaspoon of fine salt, or to taste

2 pinches of ground black pepper

2 pinches of nutmeg powder (optional)

Method:

Cook ragu as per recipe. Towards the end of cooking the sauce, put a large pot with water and salt on the stove and bring it to the boil. Cook the pasta for about 12 minutes or until al dente.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 200C and prepare the bechamel sauce.

Place the butter in the bowl and melt 3 min/100°C/vel 1.

Add the flour and cook for 3 min/100°C/vel 1.

Add the milk, salt, pepper and nutmeg powder and cook for 6 min/90°C/vel 4. Keep aside.

Drain the pasta in a colander and then transfer it to a baking dish.

Add the ragu to the pasta and mix well.

Cover with the bechamel sauce and then sprinkle with the grated cheese. Dot with some of the extra butter.

Transfer to the oven and cook for about 30 minutes or until the cheese has melted and it is slightly brown.

Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6

Comments

TOMATO CARPACCIO WITH SPRING ONION & GINGER SALSA

There is only one trick to this salad: the tomatoes must be ripe! The rest is easy and it is so delicious, you will want to make it many times. It would be a fantastic side dish to accompany any recipe. It is exceptionally good. INGREDIENTS 3cm piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped 3 spring onions, very finely sliced 40ml sunflower or olive oil 2 tsp good quality sherry vinegar 400g (beef) tomatoes (2-3 depending on size) sliced 2mm thick 1 small green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped 1 1/2 Tbsp finely shredded coriander 1 Tbsp olive oil flaked sea salt METHOD: Put the ginger and 1/2 teaspoon of flaked salt into a pestle and mortar and crush to a fine paste. Transfer to a bowl with the spring onions and stir to combine. Put the oil into a small pan and place on a low heat until just warm: you don't want it to heat too much. Pour over the spring onions and add 1 teaspoon of vinegar. Stir together and set aside. Chop the chili and ...

SLOW-BAKED LAMB SHOULDER

This is a lamb recipe that is so delicious you are going to make it more than once. A favourite of friends and family. I like to accompany with a couscous salad with feta and almonds and a yoghurt and bean dip . Recipes in this blog. INGREDIENTS 1.8 - 2.2 kg lamb shoulder, with or without the bone 2 tsp sea salt flakes 8 cloves garlic, roughly chopped 6 sprigs rosemary, stripped and leaves chopped 1 Tbsp black peppercorns 100ml extra virgin olive oil zest and juice of 1 lemon 3 Tbsp dried oregano 100ml white wine vinegar METHOD: Preheat the oven to 150°C (fan-forced). Trim extra fat from lamb. If you using a shoulder with the bone, make small incisions on the skin. Grind the salt, garlic, rosemary and peppercorns in a mortar and pestle or small food processor. Add the olive oil, lemon zest and juice and dried oregano. If using a boned shoulder, open out the lamb. Massage the marinade into the lamb. Make sure it goes into the small incisions. Pla...

TOFU MEATBALL KORMA

Tonight's meal is the Ottolenghi's Korma Feast. Gosh it was delicious 😋 ! I have been super tired with work and haven't felt much like cooking. We have not been eating very well in the last couple of weeks.... But tonight we really had a great meal even though I had to spend hours in the kitchen 🙄 . But it was worth it 😁 . Tofu meatball korma & Spicy berbere ratatouille with Olive oil flatbreads . All made from scratch. Just superb! The tofu meatballs are just amazing. I have leftover tofu and will make a batch and freeze them for another day. I can eat them just with no sauce or any other sauce. They would be lovely with some tomato base sauce or any curry sauce. But even with a side vegetable dish or salad. My husband thought that they were made with mince meat!! Yum yum! Ingredients ½ red onion, thinly sliced (60g) 2 tbsp lemon juice 40g cashews 20g blanched almonds 6 cardamom pods, shells discarded and seeds removed 2 tsp cumin seeds 2 tsp coriande...

THE BEST ONION GRATIN

I love this recipe. I have to stop myself for not eating more than I need. It goes really well as part of a baked dinner. When you try it, you'd want to make it again and again. 😍😋💚 Ingredients 4 medium red onions, peeled and quartered olive oil sea salt & freshly ground black pepper 8 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced a small wineglass of white wine 4 Tbsp crème fraîche 50g gruyère cheese, grated 50g parmesan cheese, grated Preparation Preheat the oven to 200°C. Break the onion quarters apart to give you little 'petals'. Place these in an earthenware oven dish. Drizzle with a couple of glugs of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper, and toss in your thyme and garlic. Mix up well, add your white wine. Cover with a double layer of tinfoil, wrap tightly and place in the preheated oven. Bake for 45 minutes, then remove the dish from the oven, take the tinfoil off and pop th...

ROAST CABBAGE WITH PECORINO

This is the first time I cooked this recipe and it is amazing!! We had leftovers and served warmed the following day for lunch with family members and they all wanted the recipe. It is just a very different way to eat cabbage and it is scrumptious. From Ottolenghi's cookbook 'Simple'. INGREDIENTS 120ml olive oil 2 lemons: finely grate the zest to get 2 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp lemon juice 2 garlic cloves, crushed 1 cabbage (sweetheart, pointed cabbage or other), cut lengthways into eighths a small handful of parsley or tarragon leaves, roughly chopped 30g of pecorino or parmesan cheese, shaved salt and black pepper METHOD: Preheat oven to 220°C. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the oil, lemon zest, garlic, 1/4 tsp salt and a good grind of pepper. Set aside 2 Tbsp. Arrange the cabbage on a parchment-lined tray and brush with the oil mixture. Roast for 20-25 minutes, until the edges are crisp and golden-brown. Transfer the c...

HOMECOOKING WITH TERESA

Search This Blog