Macaroni Cheese Casserole

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 400 g macaroni or other short pasta
• 75 g baguette(s) or white bread, also from the day before
• 1 onion(s)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 800 g tomatoes, chunky, from the can
• 50 g tomatoes, dried, preserved in oil
• 100 g cream
• Sea salt
• black pepper
• Nutmeg, freshly grated
• 1 bunch of basil
• 300g mozzarella
• 150 g Parmesan

Instructions

Working time approx. 25 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 55 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 20 minutes

simple and straightforward

For the pasta, bring a large pot of water to a boil and add plenty of salt. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, drain through a sieve, and rinse under running water. Crumble the bread into breadcrumbs. Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic cloves. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan. Sauté the onion and garlic until translucent. Add the diced canned tomatoes and bring to a boil. Remove the sun-dried tomatoes from the oil, drain well, chop finely, and stir in. Let simmer uncovered for 10 minutes. Then stir in the cream and season the sauce with sea salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Wash the basil and shake dry. Roughly chop the basil and stir into the sauce. Preheat the oven to 200°C (top/bottom heat) or 180°C (fan oven). Grease a large baking dish with olive oil. Carefully drain the mozzarella and tear it into small pieces. Add half of the pasta to the dish and pour half of the tomato sauce over it. Spread half of the mozzarella and half of the Parmesan cheese on top. Add the remaining pasta, pour over the remaining tomato sauce, and top with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Mix the breadcrumbs with the remaining Parmesan cheese and sprinkle over the pasta. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil. Bake in a hot oven for 25 minutes until crispy and golden brown.