This American-inspired dish is a great complement to pulled pork, ribs or other barbecue. It is also good for a buffet table and can easily stand the distance on its own, or with a simple green salad.
Beer Suggestions: Overtone - Pink Cashmere (Pale Ale) , or Flying Couch - Dude (Pale Ale)
Mac & Cheese (2-4 people):
500 g macaroni (or other pasta, e.g. penne)
50 g butter
3 tablespoons wheat flour
1 teaspoon English mustard powder
4 dl whole milk
150g grated cheddar
50 g grated parmesan
1 tablespoon plain yogurt
1 ½ dl beer (pale ale)
50 g breadcrumbs or breadcrumbs
a few splashes of Worcestershire sauce (can be omitted)
Start by cooking the pasta al dente, following the instructions on the package. Preferably with a good portion of salt in the water. Drain the pasta in a colander. It is important that all the water comes out. Transfer the cooked pasta to a large ovenproof dish.
Melt the butter over medium heat, add the flour and mustard powder and whisk together to form a stew.
Add milk little by little until the sauce thickens and becomes smooth without lumps.
Turn the heat down almost completely and add the cheese first (save some for gratin) and then the beer and yogurt. You can season the sauce with salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and other spices such as nutmeg, or cayenne pepper if you want to give the sauce a spicy kick.
Pour the sauce over the pasta, top with the remaining ingredients and breadcrumbs, and bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for about 20 minutes.
Also remember to drink pale ale.
The two beer suggestions are of the same beer type, but they can be somewhat different. The Overtone beer is more of a modern pale ale, with the tropical roots of a New England IPA. Flying Couch's pale ale has a little more bitterness and is less full-bodied and a bit drier. It is of course a matter of taste.
The recipe comes from author Mark Dredge's book: Cooking With Beer