Sun Dried Tomato Mac n' Cheese
I used to think mac n' cheese was too rich to be a summer food, but then I made this recipe. It's six main ingredients, super cheesy but still light, and uses a whole jar of sun dried tomatoes - so no worries about what to do with any leftovers!
Ingredients
- 1 bag or 16 oz. dried rigatoni
- 6 oz. parmesan
- 1 8 oz. jar of sundried tomatoes stored in oil
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups plant milk or regular whole milk
- 1 tsp each of dried basil, thyme and oregano
- ¼ tsp red pepper
- 1/4 cup fresh basil chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Grate your parmesan finely and set it aside.
- In a large pot, bring 3 quarts of water to a boil and heavily salt the water. Pour in the rigatoni noodles and cook for 7 minutes or until al dente.
- While the pasta is cooking, put a skillet on medium heat. Add the oil from the sun dried tomato jar to the skillet.
- Add the all-purpose flour to the sun dried tomato oil and mix until combined. This will be the base of your bechamel sauce, so mix until the flour forms a thick paste.
- Gradually pour in the milk to the saucepan, about 1/4-1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until a thick sauce forms.
- After the creamy sauce has formed, add in the basil, thyme, oregano and red pepper flakes. Add salt & pepper to taste. (this will need a bit of salt, so taste and adjust as you see fit!)
- Turn the heat down to low and add in the parmesan cheese, stir until a thick and creamy cheese sauce forms.
- When your noodles are done cooking, strain them, but reserve about 2 tbsp of pasta water. Replace the noodles in the pot you cooked them in.
- Pour the cheese sauce on top of the noodles, add in the full jar of sundried tomatoes, 2 tbsp of pasta water and chopped basil. Stir to combine.
- Serve immediately while the pasta is still saucy and glossy. Top with more grated parmesan if you'd like!