Rohani Jelani mac & cheese

Mac & Cheese with (smoked) sausage & broccoli

1tbsp oil
1spicy beef, smokey chicken or any sausages, sliced 1cm thick
1cup broccoli florets
160g macaroni or any short pasta
2L water
2tsp salt

Cheese sauce:
40gm butter
1/4c or 30gm plain flour
600ml milk
1/2 bay leaf
50ml whipping cream
1/2tsp salt
1/4tsp ground white pepper
120h grated cheese (80g cheddar, 40g mozarella) (optional: 1-2 tbsp freshly grated parmesan)

Method:
1. Heat oil in a small pan and fry the sliced sausages until lightly browned. Set aside.

2. Boil 2 litres of water with 2tsp salt. Blanch broccoli for 1min. Remove, run under cold water & strain. Set aside.

3. Add macaroni to the boiling water and cook for 10mins till just cooked but not overcooked. Aldente.

4. While macaroni cooking, preheat oven 200°c and essemble yr sauce.

5. Melt butter in a medium saucepan and stir in flour to the butter. Quickly mix well, pour in milk and bring to a boil - stir constantly to prevent lumps forming. Add bay leaf and simmer for another 2-3mins before adding cream, keep stirring. Aeason with salt & white pepper and take pan off heat. Discard bay leaf.

6. Quickly combine the cooked macaroni, broccoli, sausages, white sauce and 2/3 of the grated cheese mix. (If your sauce is in a big pan, combine in the same pan.)

7. Transfer into a heatproof dish, scatter remaining cheese and bake in preheated oven for 20-30mins until top is golden brown. Serve immediately.