Macaroni Cheese and Chive Puff Pastry Pies Recipe
There is nothing new about the general concept of macaroni pies, even though they may be unfamiliar to a lot of people. I couldn't even guess how many years it must be since I personally first encountered them but do know that would have been in one Scottish football (soccer) ground or another, where to this day they are still popularly sold as alternatives to the lamb or mutton filled Scotch Pies. On such occasions, they will be made with hot water pastry. As well as using puff pastry in this recipe, I have also spiced up the macaroni a little bit with the addition of some nutmeg and chopped chives. If you like mac and cheese, I hope you'll give this idea try. The pies can be served on a plate with virtually any accompaniment of choice, or simply eaten on their own - by hand - as they would be at a Scottish football ground, perhaps with a little ketchup or brown sauce.
The detailed recipe for making the macaroni filling for these pies is described below. If you do need full instructions for building the puff pastry pie cases, you can find them on my main Mini Puff Pastry Pies site - where you will also find ongoing details of the latest batch of puff pastry pies I have created!
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Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons dried elbow macaroni
- Salt
- 1 ounce (1/4 stick) butter
- 1 tablespoon plain (all purpose) flour
- 6 fluid ounces (3/4 cup) milk
- Pinch dried nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon grated cheddar cheese
- 1 tablespoon freshly chopped chives (plus optional extra to garnish)
- Butter for greasing ramekins
- 1/2 pound premade puff pastry
- Beaten egg for glazing
- Broccoli or serving accompaniment of choice
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the macaroni and reduce the heat to achieve a gentle to moderate simmer for eight minutes, stirring well and once only after about one minute. Drain the macaroni through a colander or sieve.
- Pour the milk in to a small saucepan, gently heat until just simmering then pour temporarily in to a heatproof jug.
- Put the butter in to the same saucepan and very gently melt over a low heat. Add the flour and stir to combine, forming a roux. Continue to cook this way for a couple of minutes.
- Add the milk back in to the saucepan in three stages, stirring all the time with a wooden spoon until a smooth, thick bechamel sauce is formed.
- Add the nutmeg, cheese and chives to the sauce and stir until the cheese is melted before adding the macaroni and stirring to combine. Switch off the heat, cover and leave to cool completely.
- Roll out your pastry and line the buttered ramekins while your oven is preheating to 425F/210C. Spoon in the cooled macaroni, filling each case almost but not quite to the top. Sit a pastry lid on each pie and let the pastry rest for ten minutes or so until your oven is ready.
- Glaze the pies with the beaten egg, crimp the edges and be sure to then glaze the crimps. Bake on a baking sheet for around thirty-five minutes until done.
- Let the pies sit in the ramekins for about ten minutes when they come out of the oven. They can then carefully be removed by tipping the ramekins and rested on a wire rack until required.
Hopefully these macaroni pies will appeal to you and you will give them a go at home. If so, please let me know below whether or not you enjoyed them - or not...
