Mac & Cheese with Crispy Breadcrumbs

Ingredients

• 1 tsp salt (for the pasta water)
• 400 g elbow macaroni
• 50 g plain flour
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 500 ml whole milk
• 150 ml double cream
• 50 g unsalted butter
• 200 g mature cheddar, grated
• 50 g parmesan, finely grated
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg (optional)
• 100 g fresh breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)

Method

1. Start the cooking water over a high heat. Season the pasta itself. Cook the macaroni for 1–2 minutes less than the packet says; it finishes in the oven and you don't want mush. Drain, but don't rinse.
2. Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, scatter in the flour and stir for 1–2 minutes until it smells biscuity and looks pale gold; you're cooking the raw flour out, not browning it. Pour the milk in slowly, whisking constantly, then the cream, and keep going until the sauce is glossy and coats the back of a spoon.
3. Pull the pan off the heat; and this matters, because cheese added to a boiling sauce splits and turns grainy. Beat in the cheddar and parmesan a handful at a time, letting each go silky before the next.
4. Season with the Dijon, Worcestershire, nutmeg if using, the black pepper, and a good pinch of salt. Taste it now; really taste it. Cheese sauces need more salt than you think; adjust until it tastes properly savoury, not just rich.
5. Fold the drained macaroni through the sauce so every elbow is coated, then tip into a lightly buttered 20–25cm oven dish and smooth the top. You want it loose and saucy at this stage; it tightens in the oven.
6. Toss the breadcrumbs with the olive oil in a bowl until every crumb is glossy and just damp; dry crumbs scorch, oily crumbs go evenly bronze. Scatter over the pasta in an even layer and add the parsley if using.
7. Bake at 200°C (fan 180°C) for 20–25 minutes, until the crumbs are deep golden and the sauce is bubbling fiercely at the edges. Rest for 5 minutes so the sauce settles and stops sliding.