M.E. mac 'n' cheese with za'atar pesto

Name: M.E. mac 'n' cheese with za'atar pesto
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 55 min
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Ingredients: 10½ oz/300g dried cavatappi or fusilli pasta; 2½-3 cups/600-700ml whole milk; 5 tbsp/65g unsalted butter, cut into roughly 1¼-inch/3cm cubes; 3 garlic cloves, minced; ⅛ tsp ground turmeric; 1½ tsp cumin seeds, toasted and roughly crushed with a mortar and pestle; 5 tbsp/75ml heavy cream; 1⅓ cups/ 150g coarsely grated mature cheddar; 6 1/3 oz Greek feta, roughly crumbled salt and black pepper; ½ cup/45g crispy onions or shallots, store-bought or homemade (see intro); 1 large lemon; 3 tbsp za'atar; 1 cup/20g cilantro, chopped; 1 garlic clove, chopped; ⅓ cup/40g pine nuts, lightly toasted; 6 tbsp/90ml olive oil

4 steps

Prep:25minCook:30min

From Ottolenghi Test Kitchen cookbook This recipe is a Middle Eastern take on a mac'n' cheese thanks to the addition of cumin, an herbaceous za'atar pesto, and crispy fried onions. Cooking the macaroni in the milk, as we do here, bypasses having to make a béchamel. The starches are released into the soon-to-be-cheesy sauce, making it velvety and rich without the need for the more traditional flour-butter roux. To make the crispy onions, finely slice a couple of onions into thin rounds and toss with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Fry in hot vegetable oil in about three batches, for 4 minutes per batch, or until golden.

Updated at: Sun, 21 Apr 2024 00:07:23 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Unbalanced

Glycemic Index

Low

Glycemic Load

High

Nutrition per serving

Calories1159.2 kcal (58%)

Total Fat81.6 g (117%)

Carbs75.7 g (29%)

Sugars10.4 g (12%)

Protein32.7 g (65%)

Sodium1124.5 mg (56%)

Fiber4.2 g (15%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

4 servings

Mac and cheese

300gcavatappi pasta

dried, or fusilli

600mlwhole milk

65gunsalted butter

cut into roughly 1 1/4-inch/3cm cubes

3garlic cloves

minced

⅛ tspground turmeric

1 ½ tspcumin seeds

toasted and roughly crushed with a mortar and pestle

75mlheavy cream

150gmature cheddar

coarsely grated

6.33 ozfeta

Greek, roughly crumbled

salt

black pepper

½ cupcrispy onions

or shallots, store-bought or homemade

Za’atar pesto

1lemon

large

3 Tbspza'atar

1 cupcilantro

90mlolive oil

Instructions

Step 1

1. Put the pasta, 2½ cups/600ml of milk, 1½ cups/360ml of water, the butter, garlic, turmeric, 1 teaspoon of salt, and a good grind of pepper into a large sauté pan on medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer, then turn the heat down to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10-14 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente and the sauce has thickened from the pasta starches (it will still be quite saucy). If using cavatappi, you might need to add the extra ½ cup/ 100ml of milk at this stage depending on how saucy you like your mac 'n' cheese. Turn the heat down to low and stir in the cumin, cream, and both cheeses until the cheddar is nicely melted.

Step 2

2. While the pasta is cooking, make the pesto. Finely grate the lemon to get 1½ teaspoons of zest. Then use a small, sharp knife to peel and segment the lemon and roughly chop the segments. Place in a bowl with the lemon zest and set aside.

Step 3

Put the za'atar, cilantro, garlic, pine nuts, ⅛ teaspoon of salt, a good grind of pepper, and half the oil into a food processor and pulse a few times until you have a coarse paste. Add to the chopped lemon in the bowl and stir in the remaining oil.

Step 4

3. Transfer the mac 'n' cheese to a large serving platter with a lip or a shallow bowl, dot all over with the pesto, then top with the crispy onions.