Dinners With Dairy Products

Dinners with Dairy Products

Many old favourite recipes are made with the mainstay of cheeses, milk, butter and cream. Some, as sauces to accompany traditional dishes, others make a meal on their own. Macaroni cheese was very popular with the Victorians and has been on British family menus since the fourteenth century.

Macaroni Cheese

Ingredients for 4. Preheat the oven to 200c.

• 175g shortcut macaroni
• 40g butter
• 4 tablespoons plain flour
• 2 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs
• 175g grated cheddar or Cotswold cheese with chives
• 1 pint of milk
• half a teaspoon dried mustard
• salt and pepper to season

Cook the macaroni according to instructions on the packet then drain well. Melt the butter in a pan and gradually stir in the flour then cook this roux gently for 1-2 minutes and remove from heat. Stir in the milk slowly, return to heat and bring to the boil-but continue stirring to get rid of any lumps-until the sauce begins to thicken.

Remove pan from the heat once more and stir in the mustard, salt and pepper, and next, add most of the cheese and all the macaroni. Combine all the ingredients together and pour into an ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs. The dish can then be placed in the oven and baked for about 15-20 minutes until the top is golden and bubbling. It could be browned under a hot grill, if preferred. Ready to serve.

For cauliflower cheese or leeks in cheese sauce, follow this recipe but replace the macaroni with cooked cauliflower florets or leeks.

Cheese Souffle

Be ready to serve this as soon as it is ready...otherwise it will follow the path of the similarly impatient Yorkshire pudding; into the depths of the bowl. Preheat the oven to 180c.

Ingredients

• 3 eggs, separated
• 300mls thick white sauce
• 125g finely grated cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper to season

Use a buttered 2 pint soufflé dish for this recipe if possible. First separate the eggs and prepare a white sauce (see ‘Roux-Based Sauces: What, How & When.’) Allow the sauce to cool slightly then add the grated cheese and stir well.

Beat the egg yolks into the white sauce one at a time and combine the ingredients well. Whisk the egg whites until they stiffen and form peaks then fold them into the sauce mixture with a metal spoon.

Stand the prepared soufflé dish in a pan that has hot water in it-up to three-quarters of the soufflé dish but no higher. Bake in the centre, or just above, for about 40 minutes. Avoid opening the oven door during cooking! Check that the soufflé has risen and turned a golden brown colour by looking through the glass of the oven door. Remove and serve immediately. This makes a light but tasty supper and goes well with a salad of your choice and cold meats.

Italian Omelette

Ingredients

• 6 eggs
• 6 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 225g tin plum tomatoes, drained
• 55g butter
• Salt and pepper to season and a handful of fresh basil

Fry the onions gently in the olive oil until soft and translucent. Add the drained tomatoes and a pinch of salt. Cook over moderate heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the onion and tomato from the pan-but first press them against the side of the pan-with a slotted spoon.

Beat the eggs in a bowl but not so much that they become frothy. Add the tomato and onion mixture to the beaten eggs, along with grated cheese, pepper and another pinch of salt. Tear the basil leaves and scatter into the mixture then stir it well.

Now melt the butter in a large frying pan over moderate heat. When the butter begins to foam, pour in the egg mixture and lower the heat.

Cook the mixture over a gentle heat for about 15 minutes-by which time the mixture should be set but the top may still be slightly runny. Finish off under a hot grill for a few seconds.

This is ready to eat hot, with salad or vegetables of your choice, or it can be eaten cold like a quiche.