Kitchen Garden Macaroni

This week has been head down, gathering thoughts and getting focused, ensconced in the tree-house away from phone, Hoovers and the everyday story of football folk. The reason: an article on giving time for prayer for 'Faith Magazine'. It is something I really enjoy doing, as ever since I was a tiny child I have loved steeping myself in the scriptures, so am never happier than when surrounded by bibles, commentaries, concordances and the like. I also have some brilliant recorded bible commentaries which I can listen to with earphones, which help to keep my mind away from how many laps around the meadow I may or may not have done in attempting to keep up the endless tasks of our modern preoccupation with fitness. Writing articles like this is proving tricky, but I like a challenge and while I know it will fall far short, it’s something I really enjoy. After the peace and calm of the above, piles of pressure, literally, await at the kitchen door. The garden produce in high summer is coming thick and fast and we are finding it hard a) to harvest it all and b) to eat it all! Visitors now leave with complimentary veggie and salad boxes, and our freezer has a mountain of summer fruit tarts and crumbles stashed away for the dark days of winter. We have, of course, made jam and Michael has turned out 6lb of Eliza Acton’s superlative redcurrant jelly (and is very pleased with himself). Meanwhile we are trying to dream up something different to do with courgettes, which are full-on in your face on a daily basis. Any ideas*?The following recipe was much enjoyed, eating outside on a warm and balmy summer’s evening, along with a simple tomato and basil salad, some well-chilled rose, and yet another irresistibly wonderful summer pudding.(*You can post your favourite courgette recipe on the messageboard via the tab at the top of the page. Please title it 'Courgette recipe for Delia'. Thanks.)

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  Serves 3-4

Ingredients
5 oz (150 g) macaroni (we used Martelli maccheroni, available from Fratelli Camisa - see link below)
2oz (50 g) butter
2oz (50 g) plain flour
1 pint (570 ml) milk
cayenne pepper
freshly grated nutmeg
8 oz (225 g) mixed green vegetables (we used broad beans, shelled peas and dwarf beans)
3 spring onions
3 oz (75 g) strong cheddar
3 oz (75 g) mozzarella
2 oz (50 g) grated pecorino romano (or parmesan)
a few sage leaves
salt and freshly milled black pepper

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Equipment
You will also need a shallow gratin dish (2 pint, 1.2 litre capacity).

Method

Begin by making the sauce: place the butter, flour and milk in a small saucepan over a medium heat, and whisk continuously until it has become smooth and thickened.

Season with salt, freshly milled pepper, a good pinch of cayenne and a few gratings of nutmeg then turn the heat down to its very lowest and leave it for about five minutes.

Now put a large saucepan containing 3 pints of water on to boil for the pasta. Place the broad beans, peas and dwarf beans (cut into 1-inch, 2.5-cm, lengths) in another saucepan, add some salt, pour boiling water from the kettle on them and simmer gently for 2 minutes.

Then strain off the water and sluice the vegetables under a cold tap. When the pasta water is boiling, add the macaroni and a seasoning of salt and time it for 6 minutes. While that’s happening chop the spring onions (including the green parts) and add them along with the cheddar cheese to the sauce. Taste to check the seasoning and, lastly, cut the mozzarella into small cubes. When the pasta is cooked, strain it and place it in the baking dish, toss in the vegetables and half the mozzarella cubes, then pour in the sauce and give it all a good stir.

After that top with the rest of the mozzarella and the grated pecorino, scatter a few sage leaves over and bake on a high shelf in the oven for 20-25 minutes until the top s golden-brown and the sauce bubbling. (Note: if you want to make this in advance and it goes into the oven completely cold, give it up to 35 minutes).

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