Autumnal Butternut and Bacon Mac and Cheese

Meanwhile, bring a large saucepan of water to the boil with 1/2 tsp salt.

When your water is boiling, stir the macaroni into the pan and bring back to the boil. Cook until tender, 12 mins. 

Once cooked, drain in a colander and pop back into the pan. Drizzle with oil and stir through to stop it sticking together.

While everything cooks, pick the sage leaves from their stalks and finely chop (discard the stalks).

While everything cooks, heat a drizzle of oil into another large frying pan on medium-high heat.

Once hot, add the bacon lardons. Stir-fry until golden, 4-5 mins. Set aside. IMPORTANT: Wash your hands and equipment after handling raw meat. Cook bacon thoroughly.

In a small bowl, combine the sage leaves, breadcrumbs and olive oil for the crumb (see pantry for amount). Season with salt and pepper, then set aside your sage crumb.

Grate the Cheddar cheese. 

Melt the butter (see pantry for amount) in another large saucepan on medium-high heat. Once hot, stir in the flour (see pantry for amount). Cook until it forms a paste, 1-2 mins - you've made a roux!

Stir in the water for the sauce (see pantry for amount) a little at a time, followed by the veg stock paste. Bring to the boil, stir and simmer until thickened, 1-2 mins. Stir in the creme fraiche, then remove from the heat.

Add the Dijon mustard (add less if you prefer), Cheddar and hard Italian style cheese. Stir until melted. Season with salt and pepper.

When the butternut is ready, remove it from the oven and turn your grill on to high.

Stir the butternut and lardons into the sauce along with the cooked macaroni. Add a splash of water if it's a little thick. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.

Transfer the pasta mixture to an appropriately sized ovenproof dish. Sprinkle over the sage crumb, then pop it under the grill until golden and bubbling, 2-3 mins.