Macaroni Cheese with Tomato
Tomatoes in mac and cheese!? Controversial, I know, but I grew up with this incarnation of macaroni cheese and I can’t abide any other. My mum used to make a version of this, bringing it to the table in a large, deep Corningware dish clutched between oven mitts, the kind with the blue motif and the glass lid. (Perhaps you know the sort?)
In this version, whole tinned tomatoes are tucked into the mac and cheesy sauce and they add a welcome burst of freshness to this notoriously rich family favourite. Of course, you can leave the tomatoes out if you fancy, or make half your bake with them and half without (I do this and garnish the different sides with different herbs so we can tell what’s what!) Personally I like to put the toms in because I love a surprise burst of sweet acidity with my creamy shells. I use shell pasta for this, rather than elbow macaroni, because I like the way the shells hang onto the sauce and deliver a saucy bonus with each bite.
This recipe makes a big dish full and will feed a bunch of hungry and macaroni-loving people. Salad on the side optional, if you need a little more crunch with your weighty bake.
Here’s how to make it!
Happy mac and cheese AND tomato-ing, dear pals!
xx Pip
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