Sarah Butler: How to make classic meatballs and mac and cheese for midweek dinners

Home cooking these two simple-to-make but delicious dinners will fill your family up the right way

This week, I have two lovely recipes for families. First, mac and cheese is my go-to for hungry kids who burst in the door starving after school.

It is also a great carb-fuelling dish for active teens or after a tough sports session.

What I love most about this all-American classic is that it is made with basic cupboard ingredients, a boon for those bare fridge days. I always have a few packets of cubed pancetta in the fridge for such times.

Next are meatballs, one of our firm favourites here, and generally loved by even the fussiest of eaters.

The sauce is homemade and simple to make, and the meatballs are flavoursome and, when cooked low and slow, become irresistibly tender. I prefer to slow cook them for a few hours; the sauce develops and deepens in colour and flavour.

These two recipes are a great example of something easy to make at home with cupboard essentials with not a jar or packet in sight.

Home cooking these two simple-to-make but delicious dinners will fill your family up the right way, and you might get some peace from “I’m hungry!” for a little longer than usual.

Mac and Cheese with Crispy Bacon

recipe by:Sarah Butler

When you need a big bowl of something moreish, it’s got to be Mac and Cheese. It is so simple to make, and with the most simple of ingredients, you rarely are short on what you need to make it.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 15 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 200g macaroni pasta

• 100g pancetta cubes or rashers, chopped into small pieces (optional)

• 30g butter

• 30g flour

• 350ml milk

• 1 tsp Dijon mustard

• ¼ tsp nutmeg (optional)

• 70g white cheddar, grated

• Salt and pepper

• Handful of fresh parsley to garnish

Method

1. Cook the pasta as per packet instructions.

2. If using the pancetta or bacon, fry until golden and set aside.

3. Make a roux by melting the butter in a saucepan on medium heat. Add the flour and combine with the butter; cook for one minute, stirring vigorously until it resembles wet sand.

4. Whisk the milk into the saucepan with the roux gradually, whisking at all times until a creamy sauce develops.

5. Bring the sauce to a simmer and allow it to thicken.

6. Add the mustard and nutmeg.

7. Add the cheese and allow it to melt into the sauce.

8. Season to taste with salt and pepper. It is important to taste and get your seasoning right; this is a good habit to get into — always taste as you cook.

9. Strain and rinse the cooked pasta.

10. Add the pasta to the cheese sauce and stir. Add the cooked pancetta or bacon and combine through.

11. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with parsley.

Sarah's secrets

When making any sauce, a skin can form on top if it stands for a few minutes off the heat without stirring.

A great tip to prevent this is to place some cling film directly down onto the sauce to cover it. It is handy if you want to make a sauce to reheat later – it works great with custard, too!

Meatballs

recipe by:Sarah Butler

You can cook this dish up quickly, but my favourite is to slow cook; the sauce develops, deepens in intensity, and the meat becomes melt-in-your-mouth tender.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 40 mins

Total Time

 60 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 1lb (450g) round steak mince

• 80g breadcrumbs

• 2 tbsp tomato purée

• 1 egg yolk

• 1 tbsp fresh thyme, finely chopped

• 1 tbsp fresh basil, finely chopped

• 1 beef OXO cube, crushed

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 100g flour, plain or self-raising

• 4 tbsp olive oil

• 50g butter

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 200g cherry tomatoes

• 3 garlic cloves, crushed

• 60ml white wine (optional)

• 1 can chopped tomatoes

• ½ pint chicken stock

• 1 bay leaf

• 2 tbsp grated Parmesan, to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200C, 180C fan, gas 6.

2. Add the mince, breadcrumbs, one tbsp tomato purée, egg yolk, fresh thyme and basil, crushed OXO cube, salt and pepper into a large bowl.

3. Use your hands to combine all the ingredients really well. Roll into balls roughly the size of ping pong balls.

4. Roll each meatball in 80g of flour and coat well.

5. Add two tbsp olive oil and 25g butter to a frying pan on a medium-high heat.

6. Cook the meatballs in batches of eight or so at a time, ensuring they are browned all over; they will not be cooked through. Set aside.

7. In the same frying pan, add two tbsp olive oil and 25g butter on medium heat, and brown off the onion and tomatoes for four to five minutes.

8. Add the crushed garlic and fry for a further minute.

9. Add the can of chopped tomatoes and one tbsp tomato purée into your onion, tomatoes and garlic, stir and bring to a simmer.

10. Return the meatballs to the tomato sauce.

11. Pour in the wine, if using, and allow it to reduce almost completely so there is very little liquid left in the pan. The wine is optional, but it does add a lovely flavour, and all alcohol is burnt off in the process.

12. Add 20g flour to the ingredients and mix through — this will thicken the sauce.

13. Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a simmer.

14. Once simmering, add a bay leaf, salt, freshly ground pepper, and taste to adjust the seasoning.

15. For the quick cook, cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes until the meat is fully cooked through.

16. To slow cook, transfer the meatballs and sauce to an ovenproof casserole pot or dish.

17. Loosely cover with some parchment paper and tin foil, allowing gaps for steam to escape.

18. Cook at 140C, 120C fan, gas 1 for three to four hours or place into a slow cooker on low for three to four hours or longer.

19. Remove bay leaf before serving. Garnish with grated parmesan. Serve with pasta or potatoes.

Sarah's secrets

Make extra meatballs and use the leftovers for 3-4 days.

This is the type of dinner that is nicer the next day.

We love to have meatballs with mash and peas, an Irish twist on a traditional Italian dish.