Macaroni and cheese

Tamara West

Our junior food writer, Paige Thompson, is in the kitchen with a dish kids of all ages can make for mum. "Adding chorizo to the macaroni and cheese gives the dish much more flavour. A while ago Mum bought a chorizo sausage from La Cigale French Market and at that stage I was practically obsessed with macaroni and cheese, so I added it. Now, chorizo of any kind is always added to my macaroni and cheese. You can also add vegetables, such as broccoli; in fact you can modify it in lots of ways to suit what your mum likes."

Ingredients

20 g	Butter
¼ cup	Flour
1 cup	Milk, plus additional milk if necessary
100 g	Cheese, any cheese, preferably Edam (Main)
8 cups	Pasta, macaroni or penne, allow 2 cups per person (Main)
1	Chorizo sausage, sliced

Directions

1. Fill a big pot up with water, add a pinch of salt and put on a high heat, with the lid on.
2. Put a small pot on a medium heat and melt the butter. As soon as the butter is melted, take off the heat. Add the flour to the melted butter and stir well. Add the milk, a little bit at a time. After each addition, stir constantly and make sure it stays smooth. Stir until you have made a smooth paste.
3. After all the milk is added, place back on a medium heat, keep stirring and never step away from the pot to keep the mixture from going lumpy, If lumps do form, use a whisk and add a little more milk until the sauce is smooth again.
4. Once the sauce is boiling, add the cheese, half at a time, stirring well after each addition until smooth. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Once the pot of water is boiling, add your pasta. While the pasta is cooking, turn the sauce down to the lowest heat.
5. Put a small frying pan on a medium heat, add the chorizo and fry for 5 minutes or until the outside of the sausage pieces are crispy. Add the chorizo to the cheese sauce and mix through.
6. Once the pasta is cooked, drain well, then add to the cheese sauce. Serve with extra cheese and a salad on the side.