Preheat the oven to 180°c.

Cook the macaroni in a pan of boiling water until it’s just underdone, draining it a couple of minutes earlier than you would usually. Retain a little bit of the cooking water.

While the macaroni is cooking, make the cheese sauce. Melt the butter in a medium-sized pan on a low heat. When the butter is foaming, add the flour and stir until it’s mixed in. Continue cooking for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Very gradually add the milk, stirring constantly. Make sure each bit of milk is incorporated before adding the next bit. If you do this slowly on a very low heat, you should end up with a perfectly smooth sauce with no lumps and no need to whisk. However, if it does go wrong for some reason, you can always use a whisk to beat out the lumps.

When all the milk is incorporated, add the mustard, salt and pepper. Then add half the cheese, stir to combine and turn off the heat.

Tip the pasta and a couple of tablespoonfuls of the cooking water into the cheese sauce and stir until completely coated.

Pour the macaroni cheese into a shallow ovenproof dish and sprinkle over the remaining cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes until golden and bubbling, then serve with lashings of Henderson’s Relish.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes