Broccoli and cauliflower macaroni bake
Broccoli, cauliflower and macaroni baked in a simple Cheddar sauce. Cook the vegetables before assembling so the golden topping does not hide a hard centre.
An original Recipe From Fridge editorial recipe idea. Timings are estimates; check doneness as described, not by the clock alone.
Ingredients
- 150g dried macaroni
- 200g fresh broccoli, cut into 3cm florets with stalks thinly sliced
- 200g fresh cauliflower, cut into 3cm florets
- 20g butter
- 20g plain flour
- 350ml milk
- 75g Cheddar, grated
- Black pepper, to taste
Method
- Heat the oven and prepare the vegetables
Heat the oven to 200°C, or 180°C fan, and set out an ovenproof dish of about 1.5 litres. Wash and cut the vegetables into evenly sized pieces, slicing the broccoli stalk thinly so it cooks with the florets.
- Cook the macaroni and vegetables
Cook the macaroni in boiling water for 1 minute less than its packet time, then drain. In a second pan, boil the cauliflower for 3 minutes, add the broccoli and cook for another 3–4 minutes until a knife enters the stalks with slight resistance. Drain the vegetables well so they do not dilute the sauce.
- Make a smooth white sauce
Melt the butter in the empty pasta pan over a low heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Take off the heat and whisk in the milk a little at a time until smooth. Return to medium-low heat and stir until gently bubbling, then cook for 2 minutes until it coats the spoon.
- Coat the pasta and assemble
Take the sauce off the heat and stir in 50g of the Cheddar and some pepper. Fold in the drained macaroni and vegetables, coating them evenly. Spoon into the baking dish and scatter the remaining 25g Cheddar over the top.
- Bake until hot through
Bake on the middle shelf for 20–25 minutes until lightly golden and bubbling. Check the centre, not just the edges, is steaming hot and the vegetables and pasta are tender. If the top browns before the middle is hot, cover loosely with foil and continue baking.
- Rest briefly and serve
Place the hot dish on a heatproof surface and stand for 3 minutes before spooning onto two plates. The sauce remains very hot beneath the topping, so check the eating temperature before serving to children.
Make it work with what you have
- Use all broccoli or all cauliflower if that is what you have, keeping 400g vegetables in total. Boil broccoli for around 3–4 minutes or cauliflower for 6–7 minutes, and check tenderness before draining.
- Small pasta shells can replace macaroni at the same dry weight; use their packet timing. Milk, butter and cheese all contribute to this sauce: swapping only one does not make the dish milk-free. Choose vegetarian-labelled Cheddar if needed.