Best Ever Dairy-free Macaroni and Cheese

I gave up dairy cold-turkey in December 2013 and honestly it was really hard. Not just giving up a food I loved, but the fact that dairy hides in so many foods that you wouldn't expect!

It was the right thing to do for the sake of bub's reflex and dairy intolerance (and for my health too) but I was completely addicted to dairy and ate loads of it - milk, cheese, cream, ice cream, you name it.

At first I just completely avoided it and didn't look for alternatives but as time went on, I started really missing the creaminess that only dairy gives. I  perfected dairy-free ice cream and dairy-free lasagne a while ago, which brought macaroni and cheese to the top of the list. It's one of my husband's favourite meals and he has mentioned it often over the past few years.

After a bit of experimentation, mac and cheese is back on the table!

So while this is not exactly the same as the original it is creamy, full of flavour and has a delicious cheesiness from the nutritional yeast. It is the ultimate comfort food and the kids will never know there are hidden veggies.

We LOVE this dish and it's become a regular feature on our meal plans.

If you're dairy free give it a go and let me know what you think!

Best Ever Dairy-free Macaroni and Cheese

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
375ml rice milk
3 tbs spelt flour
2 tbs nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 ts garlic powder
1/2 ts onion powder
1/2 ts turmeric
140 diced sweet potato
140g diced pumpkin
500g macaroni, cooked per packet instructions
Crispy bacon and fresh parsley to garnish

Put the water on to boil for the macaroni. Add the macaroni and cook as per packet instructions while the sauce is cooking.

Place the sweet potato and pumpkin into the bowl and chop for  8 secs / SP 8 or until very finely chopped.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add all remaining ingredients. Cook for 12 minutes / 100 degrees / SP 4.

The sauce should be smooth but if it's not, puree for 30 secs / slowly increasing from SP 3 - 9.

Drain the macaroni and return to the pot. Pour over the sauce and mix well.

Serve topped with crispy bacon and fresh parsley.

Serves 4-6

Pizza-Pasta

This is another of the kid-friendly meals I found on Better Homes and Gardens a few weeks ago. It sounded easy and delicious and was a nice twist on both pizza and pasta, both of which we eat about once a fortnight.

So this dish is pretty much exactly what it sounds like, all your favorite pizza toppings on bed of pasta. So simple I can't believe I've never thought of it before! As with last time there were no quantities available as I copied it down directly from the show but I have included what I used and my method.

I knew Mr 6 would love it - he eats pretty much anything except visible onion which absolutely must be picked off even if he can't taste it. Mr 4 would be a different matter. He has slowly come around to pizza but not with sauce. He generally has a plain base with olives, pineapple and cheese and calls it 'cheesy bread.' He is also just starting to come around to pasta but definitely not with any thing else touching it.  In the end he ate some pasta from around the edges of the plate (none with melted cheese on) and a few olives but wasn't particularly impressed. Anyone else with fussy kids? I would love to hear your tips and tricks!

Pizza-Pasta
Slightly adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

For the sauce:
2 stalks celery
2 onions
2 large carrots
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 ts dried italian herbs
1 jar tomato passata
1 tbs tomato paste
1 tbs rice malt syrup
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbs olive oil

The toppings:
Pepperoni
Olives
Mozzarella cheese

The base:
Your favourite pasta (I used penne) cooked to al dente per packet instuctions

To make the sauce, finely chop the celery, carrot and onion and fry off with the olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. When it is just starting to soften, add the garlic and cook for another few minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and simmer for about 15 minutes until the vegetables are completely cooked and the sauce is thick and smells amazing.

You can use the sauce as is or puree it like I did using a stick blender or food processor (you will need to let it cool down a bit first).

To assemble the dish, place a serve of pasta in each bowl (ovenproof), top with a generous amount of sauce then the pepperoni, olives and cheese. Place the bowls under the grill for a few minutes until the cheese melts. Make sure you let the bowls cool down before giving them to the kids!

Serves 6

Vegie-loaded Spaghetti Bologanise

I can't believe that in 7 years blogging I've never even considered posting my spaghetti bolognaise recipe before. I mean everyone and their mum has the best recipe out there, can you really improve on perfection? I changed my mind though as there has been a theme in my baking and cooking lately of surprise ingredients and hidden veggies and thought it might be interesting to others.

I just recently spilled the beans to my cauliflower-hating husband that he's been happily chowing down on cauliflower rice without even noticing! I did feel a little guilty about that but honestly if he enjoyed it then most kids will. But that's a recipe for another day.

The basic secret to my bolognaise sauce is pureeing a whole heap of veggies until they are very fine and cooking it very slowly for maximum flavour. By fully incorporating the vegetables into the sauce there are no weird textures or bits for the kids to pick. out. It is all just tomato saucy goodness!

To be honest this is easiest in the Thermomix as it chops, cooks and then purees all in the same pot however a food processor and stick blender will do the job as well.

I always make a big batch. The recipe below makes 2 full dinners plus leftovers for our family of 5 easily. We always use half on the night is made and freeze the rest for later. One will be spaghetti bologanise and then the next will be lasagne.

The rest of the family loves spaghetti but I will often have my bolognaise sauce on a pile of roasted pumpkin and greens. Makes my tummy happier and I get even more veggies in one meal which is a good thing.

If you have fussy kids (or husbands!) give this one a go :)

My Veggie-loaded Spaghetti Bolognaise

1 onion
3 cloves garlic
2 carrots
2 stalks celery
2 zucchinis
2 red capsicums
1-2 cups greens (kale, spinach, broccoli stems etc)
1kg beef mince (or a beef/pork/veal blend)
1 x 750ml jar tomato passata
2 tbs olive oil
a big handful of fresh herbs (basil/oregano/parsley) roughly chopped or 1tbs dried Italian herb mix
1 heaped tbs homemade veggie stock paste
salt and pepper to taste

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TMX - place the onion, garlic, carrots, celery and capsicum into the bowl and chop for 10 seconds / SP 5-8, using the spatula to stir if needed. Add the oil, herbs, stock paste and passata and cook for 20 minutes / 100 degrees / SP 2. Scrap down the sides and puree for 1 minute / SP 5-9. Check for seasoning. While the sauce is cooking, brown the mince in a large pan. When the sauce is done either add it to the pan and simmer together for at least 30 minutes, or place the mince and sauce plus an extra jar of passata into the slow cooker and cook on low for 4-5 hours.

-------------------------------

Using a food processor or by hand, grate the carrots, celery, zucchini and capsicums and then set aside.

Place a large pot over medium heat and add 1 tbs oil. Brown the mince and then remove it from the pan, draining the fat if you wish (I don't bother).

Add the remaining 1 tbs oil along with the chopped onion and garlic and saute until translucent.

Add the grated veggies, passata, stock and herbs and simmer for around 30 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked and it smells amazing.

Using a stick blender or food processor, blitz the sauce until it is completely smooth.

Return to the pot, add the browned mince, give it a good stir together and simmer for as long as you can (I usually do this step in the crockpot and allow it to cook on low for 4-6 hours) but even an hour would be good. Check for seasoning.

Serve with pasta or veggie noodles.

Makes LOTS.

Mushroom Lasagne

I am a huge fan of lasagne! It's definitely my favourite pasta dish but for some reason we don't tend to make it very often. It just feels much more time consuming than good old spaghetti bolognaise which we eat pretty regularly.

I had my eye on this mushroom lasagne recipe from Delicious Everyday for ages. It was actually part of a series of Christmas posts from 2010 when the blog was called Le Delicieux, so that tells you just how long it's been hanging around!

I know the recipe looks long but I managed to get this in the oven within an hour, which seems amazingly fast considering I made the pasta from scratch! I was also pregnant at the time with 2 other kids to look after so was feeling very chuffed to make making something so fancy :)

And how did it taste? DIVINE. The earthiness of the mushrooms paired with the creamiest bechamel, tender bite of the pasta and the gorgeous salty parmesan on top ... it was just perfect. If I ever need to make something vegetarian for Christmas this will be ideal.

Mushroom Lasagne 
Very slightly adapted from Delicious Everyday 

Fresh Pasta
400g strong 00 flour
4 extra large eggs
1 tbs olive oil
1 ts salt

Place the flour and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Make a well in the centre. In a small bowl whisk the eggs until the yolks are broken up, then pour into the well. Add the oil.

Using your fingertips, slowly start to mix the eggs and oil into the flour. Once combined, tip the dough out onto a floured board and knead for approximately 10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cut into 4 pieces, wrap each in cling film and allow to rest for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare your mushroom base and bechemel sauce.

Using your pasta machine, roll out each section of dough. I feed each piece through level 1 x 5 times, then once each on 2 -5. Lay out on a tea towel and cover until you are ready to use it.

Mushroom base
600g mixed mushrooms (portabella, swiss brown, button)
1 tablespoon of olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 brown onion, diced
3 ts fresh thyme, chopped
2 ts salt
1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
2 tbs beef/vegetable stock or red wine

In a large frying pan over a medium heat, fry together the olive oil and onion for a few minutes until it starts to soften. Add the garlic and cook until the onion is translucent.

Add the mushrooms, thyme, salt and pepper and cook until the mushrooms are soft. Add the stock/wine and cook until all the liquid is absorbed.

Set aside and allow to cool completely.

Bechemel sauce
500ml full cream milk
1 bay leaf
1 large clove of garlic, crushed
3 ts butter
3 ts flour
1/4 ts salt
1/4 ts freshly cracked pepper
60g of freshly grated parmesan cheese

Pour the milk into saucepan, add the bay leaf and garlic and allow towarm gently over low heat for 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaf.

In a large saucepan over a medium heat melt the butter before whisking in the flour. Cook for a minute to remove the flour taste. Pour in the warmed milk and whisk constantly until all the butter and flour is incorporated. Switch to a spatula and cook until the sauce is your preferred thickness. Don’t stop stirring! Add the salt, pepper and parmesan and stir until well combined.

Lasagna assembly
Fresh lasagne sheets
60g parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees C / 160 degrees fan-forced.

Grease your lasagne dish with butter and line the base with a lasagna sheet. Cut them to fit if needed.

Cover with half the mushroom mixture and top the mushrooms with 1/3 of the bechemel sauce. Repeat ending with a final lasagne sheet topped with the remaining bechemel sauce. Sprinkle over the grated parmesan.

Bake for around 40 minutes or until the lasagne sheets are tender and the top is golden brown.

Meatless Monday - Tagliatelle with Roasted Garlic, Capsicum and Tomato Sauce

Pasta and sauce is a regular on our weekly menu. It's easy, the kids love it and there's always leftovers for hubby's lunch the next day. After spying some gorgeous red capsicums and Roma tomatoes at the fruit shop on the weekend, this yummy pasta sauce was born!

It's pictured above with some egg tagliatelle with herbs from Aldi of all places. The pasta cooked up beautifully in just a few minutes and was a great partner for this sweet and silky sauce.

Roasted Garlic, Capsicum and Tomato Sauce

1 head garlic
6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
750g Roma tomatoes
450g red capsicums
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 ts sugar

Preheat oven to 230 degrees C and have 2 large baking dishes ready.

Slice each tomato in half length ways and place in one of the baking dishes. Place the whole unpeeled head of garlic in the centre and drizzle over 2 tbs of olive oil. Use your hands and toss well to combine. Sprinkle the tomatoes with salt, pepper and the sugar.

Drizzle a little olive oil over the capsicums and place in the other oven tray.

Place both trays in the oven and roast for about 40 minutes or until the the capsicums are blackened and soft. Remove the capsicums from the oven and place in a heatproof bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 5-10 minutes.

Check the tomatoes and garlic, they may need another 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven when the tomatoes are softened, collapsed and beginning to colour.

To prepare the capsicums you need to remove the skins. If they are cooked properly it should come away quite easily. Use a small sharp knife to make a slit and very carefully use your fingers to pull the skins away from the flesh. They will be hot so watch out for burnt fingers! Discard the skin and seeds and chop the flesh coarsely.

Into the bowl of a food processor, add the tomatoes, peeled capsicums and then squeeze out 5 or 6 cloves of the cooked garlic. Garlic cooked like this has a richer, milder flavour than raw garlic so you can go a little crazy here. Add 4 tbs olive oil and blitz to combine. When smooth, return to a pot to keep warm over a low heat. Check for seasoning and add salt, pepper and fresh herbs to taste. (The sauce can be served immediately or refrigerated overnight to allow the flavours to develop. I used a tagliatelle with herbs in it so did not add fresh herbs to my sauce).

Cook your pasta according to packet instructions. Drain and serve with the sauce and plenty of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

I also did a more kid-friendly version with spiral pasta and regular tasty cheese which went down a treat!

This sauce would also be fantastic on a char-grilled pizza with lots of feta or goats' cheese. I have stashed some in the freezer to try later on. Will let you know how it goes.

Daring Bakers March - Lasagne

Being a lady of leisure now (aka on maternity leave) I was really looking forward to making this month's challenge. That and the fact I absolutely love lasagne! Even bad lasagne is good lasagne to me and this one was out-of-this-world good!

The March 2009 challenge is hosted by Mary of Beans and Caviar, Melinda of Melbourne Larder and Enza of Io Da Grande. They have chosen Lasagne of Emilia-Romagna from The Splendid Table by Lynne Rossetto Kasper as the challenge.

It was definitely time consuming though so I made it 3 stages - the ragu and bechemel the day before, the pasta dough on the morning and then the rolling and assembly right before baking. And we still ended up eating quite late!

We received a pasta machine as a wedding present last year which was a huge help. I am in awe of all those who made this completely by hand!

I'm disappointed my pasta wasn't such a vivid green as I had hoped. I used a 250g box of frozen spinach but by the time I squeezed out all the water I was left with just 110g. Maybe fresh spinach would have more zing, colour-wise? Oh well. I also added an extra egg to make up the liquid and it worked perfectly.

Spinach pasta before kneading - rough and ready

And after - smooth and elastic

Hubs rolling the dough

Our drying racks

Assembling the dish

The finished dish - we followed the baking instructions to the letter and still got golden, crunchy bits on top (thank goodness, those are the best bits!)

Ready to eat!

This was hands down the best lasagne I had ever had. It was absolutely packed with flavour and not at all greasy. I managed to stretch the ingredients to make 2 complete dishes (although I did run out of bechemel for the second one) so we now have one waiting patiently in the freezer to enjoy once we are home with bub.

This is perfect dinner party food and we will definitely be making it again!

Thanks to our hosts for a wonderful pick this month. It's a great tie-in with the new Daring Cooks which I have registered for also.

Lasagne of Emilia-Romagna
Serves 6-8 as a main course

Spinach Egg Pasta (Pasta Verde)
2 jumbo eggs
300g fresh spinach, rinsed, dried and finely chopped or 170g frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
400g unbleached plain flour

Béchamel Sauce
60g unsalted butter
60g unbleached plain flour
570ml milk
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

Ragu
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
60g pancetta, finely chopped
1 medium onion, minced
1 medium stalk celery with leaves, minced
1 small carrot, minced
125g veal mince
125g pork mince
250g beef mince
30g thinly sliced Prosciutto di Parma
160ml dry red wine
375ml beef stock
500ml milk
1 tin plum tomatoes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup (or more) freshly grated Parmigano Reggiano ( I used a full 250g block!)

To make the ragu, Heat the olive oil in 30cm frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and minced vegetables and sauté, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, 10 minutes, or until the onions barely begin to color. Add the minces and slowly brown over medium heat. Stir often, scooping under the meats with the wooden spatula. Protect the brown glaze forming on the bottom of the pan by turning the heat down. Cook 15 minutes, or until the meats are a deep brown. Turn the contents of the skillet into a strainer and shake out the fat ( I didn't need to - there was barely any fat) then return them to the pan and set over medium heat.

Reducing and Simmering: Add the wine to the skillet, lowering the heat so the sauce bubbles quietly. Stir occasionally until the wine has reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Scrape up the brown glaze as the wine bubbles. Stir ½ cup stock into the saucepan and let it bubble slowly, 10 minutes, or until totally evaporated. Repeat with another ½ cup stock. Stir in the last 1/2 cup stock along with the milk. Adjust heat so the liquid bubbles very slowly. Partially cover the pot, and cook 1 hour. Stir frequently to check for sticking. Add the tomatoes, crushing them as they go into the pot. Cook uncovered, at a very slow bubble for another 45 minutes, or until the sauce resembles a thick, meaty stew. Season with salt and pepper.

To make the pasta, mound the flour in the center of your work area and make a well in the middle. Add the eggs and spinach, and use a wooden spoon to beat them together. Gradually start incorporating flour from the sides of the well into the liquid. Use a pastry scraper to keep the liquids from running off and to incorporate the last of the flour into the dough. It should look like a rough, messy lump. Start kneading the dough, using the scraper to scoop up any unruly pieces. Once it becomes a cohesive mass, knead for about 3 minutes. It should be elastic and a little sticky. If it is too sticky, knead in a few more tablespoons of flour. Continue kneading for about 10 minutes, or until the dough becomes smooth, satiny and very elastic. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it relax at room temperature for 30 minutes – 3 hours. Cut off about a quarter of the dough, and re-wrap the rest to prevent it from drying out. Roll into a roughly long and thin rectangular shape. Set your pasta machine to its thickest setting and roll the dough through the machine. Continue rolling through each setting, cutting the dough into sections if it becomes too difficult to handle, until it becomes as thin as possible without tearing. You should be able to see your hand through the dough. Repeat with remaining dough, and either use immediately or dry at room temperature and store in a sealed container or plastic bag for 1 day.

To make the béchamel sauce, melt the butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Sift in the flour and whisk until smooth, stirring without stopping for at least one minute. Whisk in the milk a little at a time. Bring to a slow simmer, and stir for 3-4 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Season with salt, pepper and a hint of nutmeg.

To assemble the lasagne, have all ingredients on hand. Preheat the oven to 180ºC (350ºF). Layer the ingredients repeating in this order – pasta sheets, béchamel, ragu, Parmigano Reggiano, and finishing with a layer of pasta, béchamel, cheese, salt and pepper. Cover the baking dish with foil, taking care not to let it touch the top of the lasagne. Bake for 40 minutes or until almost heated through. Remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes. When cooked, turn the oven off and let the lasagne rest inside for a further 10 minutes, then serve. This is not a solid lasagne but one that slips a bit when cut and served.

Christmas Cooking

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone had a happy day yesterday. We had a lovely Christmas lunch with N's family/friends and as our only obligation was to bring a dessert it was also very relaxing! As usual there was far too much food despite a sincere effort to cut back this year.

On the menu there were 5 (!) types of meat - chicken, turkey, ham, beef and lamb, a potato bake and 3 types of salads, followed by plum pudding with custard, trifle and cheesecake. Yum! Not to mention the prawns, fruit, nuts, cheeses and other nibblies to start with (and can I just say that prawns and I do not mix well at the moment - the smell was nauseating and I made sure to sit upwind of them!)

On a better note we've had a tradition for the past 6 years of so of having a Christmas Eve dinner. Held at one of 3 homes, it is usually with the people we won't be able to spend Christmas Day with. This year was our turn to host and I'm just so thankful the weather cooperated. It was a lovely 27 degrees on Sunday which made the day in the kitchen much more pleasant considering I've reached the stage in my pregnancy where my back and feet are starting to hurt regularly!

Our Menu:

Entree: Fresh beetroot ravioli with walnuts and goat's cheese
Main: Roast turkey breast with cranberry and macadamia stuffing, greens and spicy plum sauce
Dessert: a Daring Baker's challenge to be posted in a few days!

Apologies for the terrible photos but I completely forgot to get out my camera until we were already sitting down at the table ... twice! So don't let the photos put you off, this was a truly fabulous meal!

Beetroot Ravioli with Walnuts and Goat's Cheese
Recipe from The Cook and the Chef

Yes this really is pasta not raw steak!

Pasta
250g 00 flour
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon olive oil
100g pureed cooked beetroot

Filling
150g goats cheese
50g ricotta
3 tablespoons parmesan, grated
4 cloves garlic, roasted (in foil and squeezed)
2 tablespoons chives, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons fresh parsley
1 tablespoon lemon thyme
salt and pepper to taste

To Serve
lemon zest
20ml walnut oil
50g butter
1 tablespoon chives and lemon thyme, finely chopped
2 tablespoons walnuts, toasted and chopped
cracked pepper and sea salt
parmesan shavings
parsley

Peel the beetroot and boil in a very little water until it is overcooked, then puree. This is one time when you want the beetroot to bleed.

Place the flour in a bowl; add the egg, oil and beetroot pulp. Using a pastry cutter or your hands bring the flour into the egg mixture and gradually combine it until you have a dough. Knead the dough on the work bench for a couple of minutes until it is firm and smooth. Cover with cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes.

Combine the filling ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Season to taste.

Roll out the pasta, using dustings of flour to stop it sticking to itself.

Cut and fill the ravioli, pressing out the edges so that you don’t have double thickness of dough at the edge. Moisten the edge of the ravioli if you need to get a good seal.

Dust off any extra flour, and place in a saucepan of boiling salted water (with a dribble of oil on the surface) until they rise to the top. Drain and douse with evoo.

For the sauce, melt the butter and add the walnut oil and walnuts. Season with herbs and zest and salt and pepper.

Place the ravioli on a plate, drizzle the sauce over the top, and garnish with parsley and parmesan.

Serves 4 as a main (we made double to serve 6 people and still have a big ball of pasta dough in the freezer for another time)

Roast Turkey with Greens, Cranberry and Macadamia Stuffing and Spicy Plum Sauce

We were actually intending to have duck but balked at the price ($10 per breast!) so turkey it was. We choose a 2.6kg turkey breast on the bone, rubbed with Szechuan seasoning and roasted at 200 degrees for just under 2hrs and then rested under foil for 30 minutes. We also made sure to add some chicken stock to the roasting pan for extra moisture and a delicious 'gravy' to pour over the cut meat. The result was one of the juiciest, tastiest turkeys I can ever remember having. Even the leftovers were tender!

We baked the stuffing in a log separately to guarantee the turkey would be cooked through. This is the same stuffing I made for Thanksgiving and you can find the recipe here.

We also served blanched green beans and broccolini drizzled with the remnants of the pasta sauce and extra walnut oil.

The plum sauce was a brilliant find. It would go perfectly with duck (as it was intended to be) but it also elevated a simple roast turkey to something truly amazing.

Spicy Plum Sauce
From Taste.com.au

150ml red wine (we just used some of the plum juice)
2 tbs brandy
1 cinnamon stick
3 cloves
1 star anise
1 orange, juiced
1 tsp Dijon mustard
3 tbs redcurrant jelly
825g can plums, drained, pureed

Place the wine, brandy and spices in a medium saucepan. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Add orange juice, then return to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the mustard, redcurrant jelly and plum puree. Keep warm over low heat until ready to serve (making sure to remove the spices).

I had the best turkey sandwich EVER with these leftovers. Fan-friggin-tastic!!!

I'm already looking forward to next year :-)

Quick Macaroni and Cheese

This to me is the ultimate in comfort food and this version is quick and easy. We had this last night with pan fried pork steak on the side. No veggies as we were too lazy!

Quick Macaroni and Cheese
A Food.Baby original

500g macaroni
1 tin of tomato soup
1 tin's worth of chicken stock
1 tin's worth of milk
1 onion, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, crushed
50g butter
2 heaped tbs plain flour
2 cups grated cheese (gruyere, a sharp cheddar or a combination of both work well)

Cook the macaroni as per packet directions until just done, drain and return to the pan (off the heat). Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. Combine the soup, stock and milk and stir well, Set aside.

In a frypan melt the butter and when it starts to foam add the onion and garlic. Saute until translucent and fragrant. Add the flour and cook, stirring continuously for 2 - 3 minutes.

A little at a time, pour the soup/stock/milk mix into the pan, stirring continuously to prevent lumps. Continue until all the liquid has been added. The sauce will thicken quite a bit. Taste and season with salt and plenty of pepper.

Pour the sauce over the macaroni and stir to combine. If you want to eat straight away, add the cheese and stir over low heat for a few minutes until hot and melty. Alternatively, add about half the cheese and stir well, then pour the mix into a large baking dish and cover with remaining cheese. Add a generous sprinkle of paprika and bake at 220 deg C for about 20 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown.

Great served with a side salad or just on its own!
Serves 6.

Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Camembert

I love cheese. In fact I can't think of anything that can't be improved by the addition of cheese in one form or another! This pasta dish is incredibly rich and flavoursome, and yes, filled with cheese. It was absolutely divine!

Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Camembert
A Food.Baby original

500g fettuccine (we used curly fettucini which I think captures the sauce better - and for some reason it tastes better too!)
500g mushrooms of any variety you like, chopped
1 red onion, sliced finely
2 cloves garlic, crushed
500ml vegetable stock
3 or 4 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 x 250g pack of camembert, as ripe as possible, chopped into small chunks
Olive oil

Cook the fettuccine according to packet instructions. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce.

Add a glug of olive oil to a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and thyme leaves and fry until fragrant and the onion is translucent. Add the mushrooms and toss to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms collapse. Add the stock a little at a time. It will deglaze the pan and form the bulk of the sauce.

Reduce heat to medium-low and add the camembert. Stir until the camembert has melted. It will thicken the stock slightly.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and return to the cooking pot. Add the liquid from the sauce mixture, either dishing it out with a large spoon or straining the mixture into the pot. Toss the pasta with the sauce and divide into serving bowls. Top each serve with a generous spoonful of the mushroom mix. Scatter with thyme leaves.

Serves 6.