Creamy Greens Pasta Bake

Ingredients

• 300 g dried macaroni
• 1 leek, trimmed, washed and finely sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
• 200 g broccoli, florets separated and stalk finely sliced
• 1 tsp thyme leaves
• 50 g butter
• 50 g plain flour
• 500 ml whole milk
• 1 x 400 g tin cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 100 g baby spinach
• 50 g parmesan, grated
• 150 g mature cheddar, grated
• 50 g flaked almonds
• Fine salt and black pepper

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180ºC/gas 4. Trim, halve and wash the leek, then finely slice with the peeled garlic and the broccoli stalks; reserve the florets for later.
2. Melt the butter in a large casserole pan over a medium heat, tip in the sliced veg and strip in the thyme leaves. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring regularly, until everything is soft and sweet and the leeks have collapsed.
3. Stir in the flour and cook for a minute, then pour in the milk slowly, stirring as you go. Simmer for 10 minutes until thickened to a loose custard, stirring often so the bottom doesn't catch.
4. Meanwhile, cook the macaroni in a large pan of well-salted boiling water for 5 minutes, then drain.
5. Grate the parmesan and most of the cheddar into the sauce and stir until molten and glossy.
6. Tip the sauce into a blender with the cannellini beans and spinach. Blitz until completely smooth and a pale sage green; work in batches if your blender is small. Season generously with sea salt and black pepper.
7. Stir the sauce through the drained pasta along with the reserved broccoli florets, loosening with a splash of milk if it feels tight. You want every piece coated.
8. Tip into a 25cm x 35cm baking dish, scatter over the remaining cheddar and the flaked almonds.
9. Bake for 30 minutes, until golden and bubbling at the edges and the almonds are toasted on top.