Your favourite macaroni cheese recipes please!

[ScrambledSmegs]

(Apologies for gratuitous exclamation mark in the subject)

Yes, I know it's been done before. But macaroni cheese is one of those things that's a bit like freshly brewed coffee for me - 9 times out of 10, the anticipation is better than the reality. I need the BEST EVER recipe. And I need it today, because my I'm illing and I'm craving comfort food

My current recipe is a cheaty one, with creme fraiche instead of proper cheese sauce. It's not massively satisfying, but it does. However what I really want is something unctuous, creamy yet massively cheesy. Is there something out there like that? Additions of stuff like ham/bacon, tomatoes welcomed. Not so sure about cauliflower (I'm looking at you, Heston)

TIA!

Mine's very simple, I'm afraid, but we all like it.

Cook macaroni. Make a roux sauce with butter, plain flour and milk and then stir in lots of extra mature cheddar. Mix with macaroni. Lots of mature grated cheddar on top. Shove in over for 20 mins or so.

Enjoy.

Duh! oven not over...

Mines is a simple one too. Mix butter and flour together, add milk, mature cheese and a tea spoon of english mustard. Fry streaky bacon in a pan and add to the sauce. Pour sauce over macaroni and bake until the cheese is golden.

I always sprinkle ready salted crisps on mines when its cooked too - delish!

It's all in the cheese sauce - you have to forgive Heston the cauliflower and allow him to redeem himself with his cheese sauce....recipe is;

Heat 300ml dry white wine and allow to reduce to 30ml (about 2 tbsp worth)
Add 500ml chicken stock
Now add your grated cheeses - you need 3 types for a truly amazing sauce - parmesan, cheddar, and something stringy like tallegio. But I've made it with just cheddar and it still works fine. The trick is that you toss your grated cheese in cornflour before adding to the stock, that's what gives it the saucy consistency and binds it all together. Yum.

Other than that I always fry up some bacon and spring onion to toss in, but it really is all in the sauce imo :o:o

sowornout, yours does sound lovely. I like the sound of mustard too, kirsty - would give a great kick. Not sure about the crisps but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt!

Now, this Heston recipe, Kitten - it sounds fantastic and a bit posh, but I suspect it would be wasted on me today as my cold means I don't really appreciate any adult flavours. I'm definitely bookmarking it for future use though.

Thanks all.

I like to put cherry tomatoes (expensive, flavoursome ones, not Tesco's cheap flavourless ones!!!) and pineapple chunks in mine!!! Weird I know, but very tasty!!!!

I use the Bbc good food website recipe. Really simple an easy, mostly cheddar with a bit of Parmesan.

This one, cheddar, parmesan, gruyere and breadcrumbs. Feeds 6 (but in our house only I like it ).

I don't add the tomatoes though.

Just made it! Cook some Bacon in white wine, cheese roux sauce, stir it all together and add mozzarella and grated Cheddar on top. Comfort food and store cupboard staples at its best!

Ooh lola at first glance there I thought ewww pineapple chunks you wrong'un, but....but....pineapple chunks, posh toms and some thick cut ham = hawaiian mac &cheese no?! Might have to give that a go!

Oh, Babylon - if I hadn't already cooked it (and it was delicious, thanks Kirsty) I would definitely have made that one. It looks like it would have the hit of cheese that I need. Gruyere and parmesan and mature cheddar? Get. In.

You are all missing the vital amazing ingredient! A chicken stock cube in the cheese sauce, next time try it and come back and tell me how amazing my tip was

Kitten, your reply made me laugh! I don't thing anyone has ever called me a "wrong un" before! I know it sounds wrong but I love pineapple on pizza so I thought "why not?" when my sister was trying to convince me to try it years ago...I haven't made it any other way since! No ham for me though, I'm a veggie!

Whatever I may/may not add regarding crispy bacon, chopped red pepper, chopped cooked chicken, sweetcorn etc one thing always goes into my macaroni cheese sauce: strong cheese and a good teaspoon (or whatever amount to your taste) of mild curry powder It's the biz!

Curry powder???!!!
I add mustard but never would have thought of curry powder?

It's great. Not so much to make it taste of curry. Just a mild one to bring out the cheesyness. It's v yum.

I make my cheese sauce with creme fraiche instead of milk, two types of cheese, garlic and a chopped onion and a spponful of French mustard. Mixed with the macaroni, layered with slices of bacon, covered with breadcrumbs and baked. Yum. I don't consider creme fraiche cheating. I consider it lush.

I made a brilliant one with some cubes of Camembert stirred into the white sauce, as well as cheddar and parmesan recently. And I put breadcrumbs, parmesan and chopped flatleaf parsley on top before grilling it.

The trick is also to use less pasta and more sauce than you think you'll need, so it's light and cheesy and yummy but not stodgy.