The Layers of the Macaroni

Last Sunday it was another hot day and the dog and I had both treated ourselves to a lie in after attending a Barbecue in town at a friends' house that went on into the small hours of Sunday Morning. We followed this up with a three hour wander down a trail that once was home to a number of local coal mines.

Later that day my parents were coming over for tea for the first time, in a while, so I had set aside a very special recipe to cook and one for you wonderful readers to try as well. I had settled on cooking a Macaroni Cheese with a difference. The ingredients were as follows:

For the main part of the dish:

1 Butternut Squash: peeled, de-seeded, topped and tailed and cubed.
1 Red Onion: peeled, topped and tailed and diced.
1 Tablespoon of Dried Marjoram, Sage and Rosemary.
1 Tablespoon of Dried Basil.
1 Tablespoon of Dried Oregano.
12 Ounces of Macaroni.

For the sauce:

6 Leaves of Purple Sage from my garden.
4 Ounces of melted, unsalted, Butter.
1 heaped tablespoon of Plain Flour.
Half a pint of Milk.

For the topping:

Two sliced Tomatoes.
8 Ounces of Cubed Cheshire Cheese.
4 Ounces of Cubed Caramelised Onion Cheddar Cheese.

I had got my Bluetooth Speaker working after almost two years. It had meant stripping my computer back to its factory settings and getting rid of that infernal Windows 10 which had positively ruined many of the best things about my laptop, including my Bluetooth Sound System.

On the player to match the sunny summer weather was the Beach Boys two albums on one CD compilation Friends and 20/20. The band's powers were on the wane on both these records but there is enough quality on them to make them very listenable especially as they contain such hits as "Do It Again" and "I Can Hear Music".

I prepared the dish as follows:

1. I sweated the Butternut Squash and Red Onion with the dried herbs  in my Le Cresceut in Olive Oil on a medium heat in the hob for twenty-five minutes.

2. While I was sweating the vegetables and herbs I boiled up the Macaroni in water in sauce pan for ten minutes. I then drained the Macaroni and set it to one side. I find it is better to pre-cook the Macaroni to ensure it doesn't dry up when you cook it with the other ingredients.

3. Next I made the sauce by melting the Butter in a sauce pan and mixed it with the Flour and the Purple Sage Leaves. Once they had formed a honeycomb-like consistency, I gradually stirred in the Milk on a medium heat until I had a thick sauce.

4. When all that was done I started the layering of the dish in the Le Cresceut.  The Squash, Onion and Dried Herbs were place on level one. The Macaroni was put on the second layer and the Sauce was spread liberally on the third layer making sure it covered all the Macaroni. On top  of all this I spread the two sliced Tomatoes, eight ounces of cubed Cheddar Cheese and four ounces of cubed Cheddar with Caramelised Onion.

5. I cooked the Macaroni Cheese in the Le Cresceut with lid on for twenty minutes on Gas Mark 6. I then took the lid off and cooked it for a further five minutes on Gas Mark 6.

During my childhood I had memories of Macaroni Cheese being a pleasant, albeit bland, meal. However with the introduction of the Butternut Squash, Purple Sage and Caramalised Cheddar among other ingredients it was transformed into a flavoursome main meal and certainly one my parents enjoyed too.

Tomatoes on top provided some delicious decoration for this dish.