Baked Macaroni

I sometimes find myself hankering for the favorite dishes of my childhood. This is definitey one of them. It's somewhat like a pie, with an egg filling poured on top of the macaroni, but it's called a "Makaronipudding" in Swedish. You can add other veggies as you see fit, and you don't have to use plain elbow macaroni - but that's how I do it. I like it baked in a pretty big pan so that it comes out more shallow and crunchy - if you use a smaller, deeper dish, you might have to cook it for a few more minutes.

I had some "kryddost" to use up - a cheese studded with cloves, quite unusual but popular in Sweden. It was definitely nice here - but go ahead and use any flavorful cheese you'd like. A strong cheddar is great. Serve with some lingonberry jam on the side.

Baked Macaroni
(printable recipe)
serves 6

500 g elbow macaroni
200 g smoked ham, diced
100 ml thinly sliced leek
5 eggs
500 ml milk
200 ml grated cheese
salt, pepper

Boil the macaroni until al dente. Mix eggs, milk, cheese and spices in a bowl. Mix macaroni, ham and leeks in a baking dish, I use a rimmed cookie sheet. Add the egg mixture.

Bake at 200°C for 20-25 minutes.

Recipe in Swedish:
Makaronipudding