This is a fantastic mac & cheese recipe. I mean, it pretty much follows the standard formula of: make roux, add milk, add cheese, add pasta, bake. So there's not really anything revoluationary going on here, but the formula is a classic for a reason!

This makes a lovely cheese sauce. And, of course, the toasted breadcrumb topping makes it even better. And, just in case that wasn't enough, there's also a bit of bacon stirred into the mix. Perfection!

The only issue I had was that the proportions seemed way off. The recipe only calls for 225g of pasta and that didn't seem like nearly enough for the amount of sauce the instructions produced. So we ended up cooking a bunch more pasta and stirring it in 'til it looked about right. But then, of course, it seemed a bit under-bacon'd, so we ended up mixing in a little more bacon as well. Still... having dealt with that quibble, the results were excellent!

Bacon Mac & Cheese

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1/4 c. unsalted butter, divided
• 4 slices baguette (or similar) torn into crumbs
• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1/4 tsp. ground cayenne
• 3 c. milk, warmed
• 1/4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce (optional)
• 375g Cheddar cheese, grated, divided
• 375g macaroni (or similar short pasta)
• 8 slices bacon, cooked and chopped

Directions

1. Grease a 1.5L baking dish.
2. Melt 1 Tbsp. of the butter over medium heat.
3. Add the breadcrumbs and toast, stirring often, until browned (4-5 minutes). Transfer to a plate and set aside.
4. Melt the remaining 3 Tbsp. of butter over medium heat.
5. Add the flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne and cook, stirring constantly, until flour is cooked (~2 minutes).
6. Slowly whisk in the warm milk and Worcestershire sauce (if using) and keep stirring until lumps dissolve.
7. Cook, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens (10-15 minutes).
8. Add 250g of the cheese and stir until melted and fully combined. Remove from heat and set aside.
9. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F).
10. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions.
11. Drain the pasta, return to pot, and pour the sauce over.
12. Add the bacon pieces and stir to combine.
13. Dump the mixture into the prepared baking dish and top with the remaining cheese.
14. Sprinkle the toasted breadcrumbs on top and bake at 190°C (375°F) until bubbling and heated through (~30 minutes).