Food & Drinks

Recipe: the best mac ’n cheese

mac and cheese recipe cookbook

Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the gourmands at online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat it and what to cook. This time our cheffies serve you: you want to make this mac ’n cheese from cooking sensation Nick.

Eating with Nick from YouTube phenomenon Nick Toet is full of easy recipes. Away with all those complicated instructions and just cook deliciously as it should be; without fuss and to your own taste. It should hit that one spot where you say ‘oh my god, I've never eaten so well’. Because that's what Nick loves to make: food for your soul. We say: make it quickly, this mac ’n cheese.

Nick: ‘Maybe this mac ’n cheese is more cheese ’n mac. More cheese means more happiness. Big family? Lots of brothers or sisters? This is the perfect dish to make for many people. Super easy and especially incredibly delicious. And cheese fills you up! Creamy cheese sauce mixed with al dente macaroni, what’s not to love about this?’

Preparation: 40 min 
Servings: 4

INGREDIENTS
500 g macaroni
2 tbsp olive oil
45 g butter
45 g all-purpose flour
750 ml whole milk
250 ml whipped cream
salt and pepper
200 g cheddar, grated
150 g Parmesan cheese, grated
500 g aged Gouda, grated
150 g gorgonzola dolce, crumbled
1 ball of mozzarella, torn into pieces
1/2 bunch of basil, roughly chopped

Need more
whisk
baking dish
How to make the mac ’n cheese

  • Throw the pasta into boiling salted water and check the packaging for how long it should cook. Make sure you don't take the full cooking time, but go slightly under (for example, instead of 8 minutes, do 6). This way, the pasta stays al dente, as it will go into the oven later. Drain and drizzle the olive oil over it. Massage the pasta.
  • Let the butter melt in a pan. Toss in the flour and use a whisk to stir it in. Cook the flour for 2 minutes (it will start to bubble). Gradually add the milk and cream, a splash at a time. This way, the flour mixture adjusts to the milk and cream, and the sauce slowly thickens. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Now stir the cheese into the sauce in portions. Don't force it, just take it easy. And save some Parmesan cheese and mozzarella for gratin. Keep stirring well, don't let it burn, and make sure there are no lumps.
  • Preheat the oven to 180 °C.
  • In a bowl, mix the pasta with the cheese sauce. Then put everything in the baking dish, sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese and mozzarella on top, and bake for 30 minutes. It's ready when the cheese on top is nicely melted and has a lovely leopard pattern. Toss the basil on top. Buon appetito!

Title: Eating with Nick
Author: Nick Toet
Price: €25
Publisher: Carrera