American Mac 'n Cheese

Ingredients for 5 servings:

• 500 g macaroni or penne or other pasta
• 100 g butter
• 400 g grated Chester cheese or other cheese
• 4 tbsp flour
• salt and pepper
• Thyme
• Worcestershire sauce
• 1 onion(s)
• 5 slices of rusk
• 200 ml milk
• 1 lemon(s), juice

Instructions

Working time approx. 10 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 40 minutes

according to mother-in-law’s recipe, vegetarian

Cook the pasta in a pot of salted water according to the package instructions. Meanwhile, dice the onion and sauté it in some of the butter with the thyme. Add the rest of the butter and bring to a boil. Stir in the flour and sauté briefly. Add the milk and bring to a boil. If the sauce becomes too thick, add more milk. Season the finished sauce with salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and lemon juice. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in half of the cheese. Transfer the cooked pasta to a baking dish and mix with the cheese sauce. Spread the remaining cheese over the top. Crush the rusks into crumbs and sprinkle over the top. Bake in a preheated oven at 250°C (top/bottom heat) for approximately 15-20 minutes on the middle rack, until the rusks are golden brown.