Christmas pigs in blankets with Dragon Handcrafted Macaroni and Cheese

Merry Christmas!

Christmas macaroni and cheese is festive comfort food at its finest! Tender macaroni in creamy, cheesy chicken and tarragon sauce, topped with juicy pigs in blankets and finished with crunchy sage and onion stuffing topping. Quick and easy to make, and a wonderful way to use up Christmas leftovers.

Remember that a basic macaroni cheese recipe calls for dried macaroni, butter, plain flour, milk, cheese, often Cheddar and sometimes breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan for the topping. Some recipes call for mustard and/or nutmeg too.

In a festive twist on the classic recipe, this Christmas macaroni and cheese is made using chicken stock, fresh tarragon and double cream for an indulgent, comforting cheese sauce, finished with juicy pigs in blankets and crunchy sage and onion stuffing.

Full recipe:

Preparation time: 20 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Calories: 633

Serves: 4

Cost: £2.67

Ingredients

• 8 pigs in blankets
• 250g dried macaroni
• 60g Dragon Welsh Salted Butter
• 30g plain flour
• 400ml whole milk
• 1 chicken stock pot or fresh chicken stock
• 125g Dragon Handcrafted Cavern Platinum grated
• 125g Dragon Handcrafted Cavern Ruby grated
• 150ml double cream
• 1 tbsp fresh tarragon finely chopped
• 20g sage and onion stuffing mix

Instructions 

1. Cook the pigs and blankets according to the packet instructions, and set aside.
2. Cook the macaroni according to the packet instructions drain and set aside, reserving some of the cooking water for later.
3. While the macaroni is cooking, melt 30g salted butter in a large non-stick saucepan or skillet. Once melted, stir in the flour and beat to form a roux, stirring continuously over a low heat for a couple of minutes or so to cook the flour.
4. Meanwhile, heat the milk in a microwave or in a small pan on the stove and, once hot, gradually stir it into the roux a little at a time over a low to medium heat, stirring continuously until all the milk has been added. By now, you should have a creamy Béchamel sauce.
5. Add the chicken stock pot and stir until dissolved.
6. Remove the pan from the heat and add 75g grated Cavern Platinum and 75g grated Cavern Ruby, stirring to combine.
7. Add the double cream and fresh tarragon, stirring through, followed by the reserved pasta water.
8. Finally, add the drained macaroni to the mix, stirring to ensure each piece is fully coated in sauce.
9. Pour the mixture into a deep oven dish, and top with the remaining grated cheese.
10. Arrange the pigs in blankets on top of the grated cheese, sticking out at a slight angle.
11. Scatter the sage and onion stuffing mix over the mac ‘n’ cheese, then melt the remaining butter and drizzle it over the top to help to prevent it from drying out, or burning under the grill.
12. Preheat the grill to a low to medium heat, carefully place the dish inside and grill for 8-10 minutes, until golden and bubbling. Enjoy!

Notes 

• If you don’t have a stock pot to hand, you can use a crumbled stock cube instead, but we would recommend adding it with the flour when making your roux, to prevent clumping.
• Use as much or as little double cream as you like, depending on personal tastes and you can leave it out altogether if you prefer.
• Mac ‘n’ cheese tastes best served hot but if you store any leftovers in the fridge, they can be enjoyed cold, or reheated in an oven or microwave although it may not be quite as saucy once reheated. As my pigs in blankets mac and cheese contains double cream, we don’t advise freezing.
• Don’t fancy a sage and onion stuffing topping? You could opt for a simple cheese and/or breadcrumb layer or, for a festive alternative, ground roast chestnuts and sourdough breadcrumbs work well.