Moving-in Mac 'n' Cheese

Boxes are stacked, half open and scattered across the conservatory. Semi-damp clothes are drying in odd places, like from the handles of the bathroom windows. My bedroom is a mess- I started moving my wardrobe then realised I had massively over-estimated my own strength and it was far too heavy to do it myself. There are my course books, and for some reason, books that are not from my course arranged on my shelf. My beloved plant has withered in the corner, admittedly I didn't water it all summer. My housemate yells from the top of the stairs, "Has anyone seen my Law book, volume 2?", as I wonder if I left my laptop on the train. "I have it!", I yell back. Chaos.

We muster the courage to search out a pyrex dish and enough knives, forks and mismatched plates for that evening (we actually later found an entire cupboard full of plates, but never mind). Collectively we own eight cheese graters, but could only find one mini version, which made this take a lot longer than usual. Even still, it was super-simple to make.

This mac 'n' cheese recipe was the calm in the moving-in storm. Extra cheesy, with added bacon and a little kick from the mustard, was the comfort we all needed.

Ingredients:

• 300g macaroni

• 4 tbsp butter

• 40g plain flour

• 500ml milk

• Salt and pepper

• 1 tsp Colmans mustard

• 60g Cheddar

• 30g Red Leicester

• 30g Gruyere

• Large splosh of white wine

• 400g smoked bacon lardons

• Sprinkle of breadcrumbs

• Sprinkle of mozzarella and cheddar mix

Recipe (serves 5-6):

1. Preheat the oven to 200C.

2. Cook the macaroni according to packet instructions, al dente.

3. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large pan. Add the flour and mix thoroughly together. Add the milk and stir until thick.

4. Add the salt, pepper and mustard to taste.

5. Add all the cheese to the mix. And when melted, splash with wine and mix.

6. Cook the bacon lardons until crispy in another pan.

7. Mix the bacon, cheese sauce and macaroni together and add to a large pyrex dish.

8. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs, cheddar and mozzarella.

9. Cook in the oven until the golden brown and lovely.

This dish got top reviews from my new flatmates, although must not get too arrogant and remember that, at university, any free food is good food.

Enjoy! x