Easy-Peasy Cheesy Pasta

Cooking food from scratch most definitely isn’t my forte. I tend to lift things straight from packets and throw it in the microwave. However, this recipe is one that even I found simple and easy to make. It makes enough pasta for one person and doesn’t cost that much either!

You will need:

• 250ml of semi-skimmed or whole-fat milk.
• 1 tablespoon of butter or margarine.
• 1-2 tablespoons of flour (self-raising or plain)
• 2-4 handfuls of grated cheese.
• Enough pasta for yourself. I usually measure it out by half-filling the bowl I’m using.
• Salami or ham (optional, but really tasty).

Step One

Place your pasta into a pot full of boiling water. Add two or three pinches of salt. Put the lid on the pot and leave this to the side to cook slowly.

Step Two

In a second pot, slowly heat the margarine or butter until it is completely melted. Whilst stirring, add in your flour. I suggest adding in one tablespoon only at first. Your mixture will become gloopy and stick together, but don’t worry! This is usual. Cook the mixture for 30 seconds to a minute and then take the pot off of the heat. Check your pasta by tasting one or two (or if you’re me, five) pieces to see whether you would determine it ready or not. Bring it down to a low simmer.

Step Three

Add a small amount of the milk. Stir it thoroughly; making sure that the mixture is smooth and not lumpy. Continue doing this, adding a small amount of milk each time. Your mixture should now be quite smooth and look more like a sauce. Place the pot back onto the heat. You’ll be looking to heat the mixture right through, so keep it on there for at least a minute, stirring consistently. This is the point where you may find that the mixture sticks to the bottom of the pot, so make sure you keep stirring it!

Step Four

Once your sauce mix is boiling, bring it off the heat once again. Taking a handful of grated cheese, place it in the pot and stir. Your mixture should be hot enough to melt the cheese and as you stir, the sauce should change colour slightly. Continue adding in the cheese, tasting the sauce as you go along. If you want the sauce to be quite mild, you may only need one handful of cheese. If you want it to be strong, I suggest continuing to add more and checking it as you go along to get the correct taste.

Step Five

Your pasta should now be finished cooking. Drain the water from it, leaving the pasta in the pot. Pour your cheese sauce into the pasta pot and stir thoroughly, making sure all of the pasta is coated. At this point, you might want to add some salami or chopped ham to the mix to give it a little extra taste, as well as seasoning it with pepper. Once this is done, pop into the bowl and enjoy!

And there you have it! A quick and easy recipe for a delicious cheesy pasta that isn’t that difficult to make!