BEST EVER FOUR CHEESE MAC n CHEESE

Creamy oozing sumptuous loaded four cheese mac n cheese, topped with crispy sweetcure bacon and crispy crunchy bacon Parmesan panko breadcrumbs, just dive right in or eat with a spoon!  My son loves to drizzle habanero sweet chilli sauce over his Mac n cheese too.

Ingredients 

(serves 4-6)

1 kg elbow macaroni 

50g butter

50g plain flour

1 ltr gold top creamy Jersey milk

1 onion halved 

1 clove

1 bay leaf

400g -500g medium cheddar cheese grated 

100g Emmental grated 

100g Gruyère grated

200g Parmesan grated

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg

Sea salt and white pepper

Toppings

500g sweetcure bacon

1 tbsp butter

250g panko breadcrumbs 

100g fresh grated Parmesan 

Habanero sweet chilli sauce (optional)

Mac n Cheese

Take the onion and using the clove as a stud, pin the bay leaf to the onion and pop into the milk, bring the milk up to almost a simmer and take off the heat, leave to infuse for half an hour.

Meanwhile fry off the bacon until crispy, using your fingers crumble the bacon, reserve to one side on some paper towel.  In the same pan add the butter, once melted add the breadcrumbs and toast until light golden in colour, take off the heat and toss through the Parmesan cheese, reserve to one side.

Meanwhile make the roux by melting the butter and adding the flour, cook on a low heat for five minutes, this is to cook out some of the flour flavour.  Increase the heat to a medium, remove the onion from the milk, add a ladle of infused milk, whisk in well, repeat this until all the milk has been incorporated, you want a medium thick sauce that if you draw a line through on the back of a spoon the line stays.

On a gentle simmer keep the sauce cooking for twenty minutes stirring almost all of the time, next add the cheddar, half of the Parmesan cheese, the Emmental and Gruyère and stir in until melted, season with the nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste, add more seasoning or cheese to your taste, leave on a low low heat while you cook the macaroni.

Bring a large pan of water to a boil season with a tbsp of sea salt, drop in the macaroni and cook for 6-8 minutes until al dente, soft but with just a hint of bite to the elbows, roughly drain and add to the reserved bechamel cheese sauce and combine well. 

Pour into a large casserole dish, top with the crispy sweetcure bacon and panko bread crumbs, bake for 30 minutes until bubbling hot and serve.