25 Apr Emergency Mac + Cheese
Don’t want to adult today, but need to get dinner on the table? Enter: super quick and easy macaroni meal.
By Jade O’Donahoo: Simple pleasure. In fact, this recipe is so simple I almost didn’t include it in my cookbook. But as this dish is just delicious and takes less than 10 minutes to get on the table, I opted to share it with you. It is also my son’s favourite meal to eat. In winter, I use olives instead of tomatoes and parsley instead of basil, plus a tiny drop of chilli oil. You can use whatever small pasta you like – the quicker the cooking time, the sooner your meal will be ready.
Makes: 1 large serve.
Ingredients
100 g (3½ oz/ 2/3 cup) macaroni
A handful of fresh basil leaves, torn
A handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
3 bocconcini (fresh baby mozzarella) balls, quartered
Drizzle of olive oil
Method
Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling water according to the packet’s instructions. Drain, and return to the saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients, season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Taste again and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
The pasta can be eaten cold the following day for lunch; just leave out the basil until you are ready to serve.
This recipe is an edited extract that features in Eat This, My Friend by Jade O’Donahoo and is published by Hardie Grant Books, $24.99, available now in all good bookstores and online.
