Chilli mac’n’cheese

I live for a one-pot wonder! I love cooking, but I also love finding ways to simplify meals and make them easy and hassle-free to make without compromising on taste. Comfort food is my thing, and I always love it when Autumn kicks in and I feel really justified in cooking up big pots of comfort food! Some of my favourites are beef & Guinness casserole, smoky chilli con carne, pork and apple stew and Brazilian pork stew

The brilliant thing about these types of meals is that it’s actually really easy to make them lovely and healthy- you can fit in so many veggies into a casserole or a stew, and the method of cooking often means there’s no need for added fats, so as long as you use a lean meat you can really control how healthy your meal is.

Chilli con carne is a real favourite of mine, and it’s often a Saturday night meal for us, served with some brown rice with lots of lime squeezed over the top and homemade guacamole (or even Brocamole or zucchimole!). I also love toasted seeds on top (sunflower and pumpkin seeds dry-fried for a couple of minutes) and lots of fresh coriander.

I’ve always found macaroni cheese a bit too much on it’s own, as I’m not a huge fan of cheesy sauces- but I loved the idea of making a mash-up of chilli con carne and macaroni cheese! My version doesn’t have a cheesy sauce added in, just cheese stirred through, but you could always add an extra cheese sauce element by using some low- fat cream cheese melted into milk and stirred through.

can you freeze chilli mac’n’cheese?

Yes! Although I usually avoid freezing pasta as it can just end up so mushy when you reheat it, macaroni stands up much better to freezing/reheating as it’s a denser type of pasta. So if you make a great big batch of this and have lots left over then simply freeze it in individual portions in a freezer-safe plastic container or freezer bag.

To do this, just cool it first, and freeze for up to 3 months. I usually allow it to thoroughly defrost (ideally in the fridge overnight) and then just reheat it in the microwave.

what substitutes can I make?

• If you aren’t a fan of kidney beans then try black beans, pinto beans or haricot beans instead (personally I prefer these and sometimes use a mix of them!). You can buy both varieties dried, but I tend to by the tinned ones so that they are ready to go.
• You can substitute the beef mince for extra lean turkey mince if you wish!
• You can use different varieties of pasta but you may need to adjust the timings if doing so.
• If you fancy some more oozy, stringy cheese, stir some mozzarella through the pot before scattering the cheddar on top and grilling.