Crispy Creamy Mac And Cheese

Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap and set aside.

Make the macaroni gratinee: In a large saucepan, heat the milk to a simmer. Add in the sodium citrate, sugar, and salt to dissolve. Stir in the creme fraiche, mimolette, and parmesan until smooth. Keep warm.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 6 minutes.

Drain, then add the pasta to the cheese sauce, stirring well to coat. At this stage, you could totally place the macaroni and cheese sauce into a casserole dish and bake in the oven at 400F/204C until nice and golden and bubbly, serving it alongside the bechamel sauce (especially if you don’t have any sodium citrate, which acts like a thickening agent). But what you should do is place the pasta and sauce into the prepared loaf pan, straightening out the pasta so that it lies straight and horizontally in the loaf pan, pressing it into it. Chill the loaf pan for up to 4 hours.

Make the bechamel: Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium. Add the bay leaves and onion and cook until soft, 6 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour, nutmeg, and cloves and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. While whisking constantly, stir in the milk and cook until thick, 2 minutes. Season with the salt and transfer to a blender with the dill, parsley, and garlic chives. Remove the bay lead and puree until smooth. Stir in the creme fraiche and set aside.

When the macaroni is chilled, remove it from the loaf pan. Cut it crosswise into 2-cm (3/4-inch) portions. Melt the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Cook the slices of macaroni, flipping once, until golden brown and crispy, 3 minutes.

Warm up some bechamel sauce and spread it onto the bottom of a plate. Top with the crispy macaroni. Toss the asparagus and herbs in a small bowl with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper and serve each slice of macaroni with some asparagus and herbs.

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