Another day, another Christmas party hangover. And there’s no chance of calling in sick when you’re mainlining mulled cider at Winter Wonderland all over Instagram, so you’re going to need to be prepared. Firstly, the age-old pint of water before you roll into bed will never do any harm and secondly, make this carb-heavy lunch the day before and take it with you in your time of need.
Mac’n’cheese is a widely accepted hangover lunch choice thanks to its comforting, carby pasta load and when paired with prodigious amounts of cheese, it becomes something greater than the sum of its parts. To stop you falling into a carb coma we’ve added cauliflower, kale and butternut squash as extra vessels for all that cheesy saucy ambrosia – plus the vitamins might even do you some good. The recipe below makes a giant portion for you to either go all out with, or save half for dinner, because no day can be bad when it involves double pasta… however brutal the hangover.
Ingredients
200g macaroni
30g butter
200ml milk
Handful grated Gruyere
Handful grated cheddar
Handful kale
A few cauliflower florets
60g butternut squash, roughly diced
Tsp English mustard
Method
-
Get the macaroni going in a pan of boiling water. It should take around 10 minutes, so five minutes in add the cauliflower and butternut squash to the pan to kill three birds with one stone. Once it’s cooked, drain.
-
Add the butter and stir until melted. Then, sprinkle flour all over the top. I did this by eye, but probably around 40g will do it. Mix it all in together and let it cook over a low heat for a minute or two. It will look claggy, sticky and not nice: never fear, this is right.
-
Next, pour the milk into the pan and stir again. Give it a few more minutes over the low heat until it begins to thicken up (this will happen quickly when it does, so keep an eye on it to get the consistency you’re after).
-
Chuck the kale in at this point, and English mustard if you’re using.
-
Now your sauce should have come together, so it’s time to add two thirds of your cheese and stir it in. Taste and season well with salt and pepper.
-
Pour it all into a shallow oven-proof dish and sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the top. Pop it in the oven for 10 minutes at 190C until golden and bubbling.
-
Try not to eat it now – this is to save your life tomorrow. Put into Tupperware if you can resist and reheat in the office microwave for three minutes.
Like this? Then you might also be interested in:
How To Make A Hangover Busting Burrito Bowl For Lunch The Day After The Night Before
Apparently McDondalds Chicken Nuggets Come In These 4 Specific Shapes So We Tested It
Barack Obama Has An Issue With Ketchup. I Might Have An Issue With Obama
Follow Jo on Twitter @JoEatsLondon
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.