Cooking for me is, the art & chemistry of taste & texture. Good food is good for the soul as well as the taste buds and your stomach - I have been making this recipe for many many years and today I quite fancied making this simple, tasty little pasta dish again - thought it may help me recover as I have the dreaded winter bug ;(

The only technical stage is the roux

The cooking time is 20 mins - enjoy & follow my lead --------------> ;-)

Step 1: Ingredients & Tools

6" saucepan. 9" saucepan with lids
15ml dessert spoon 5 ml dessert spoon
Cheese grater.

Level 15ml dessert spoon of Oil (your choice)

15ml medium scoop of Corn flour

142ml milk. 3oZ medium cheddar
Salt, black pepper, mixed herbs, tip of garlic segment.

165gm pasta amori or twirls
80 gms tuna 100 gms corn

2litres boiling water for pasta

Step 2: Making the Roux

To start with, take 6" saucepan then with a 15ml dessert spoon take a scoop of Corn flour, empty into pan.
Next take the 15ml spoon again a pour level measure of some oil like sunflower corn or coconut, empty into pan - now combine the two on a low to medium heat - you should now have a paste like so, see picture as reference.image 3

Next pour 142ml (1/4 pt) of milk and dissolve paste into liquid, do this off the heat -

Flavouring the sauce,

take a 5ml tea spoon using the tip as our measure add some ground black pepper, herbs and a little salt - take a tip of a fresh garlic segment, finely chop and add - now place back on the heat and carefully let thicken, stirring regularly to avoid lumps until double cream thickness.

Step 3: Adding Grated Cheese to the Roux

Grate 3 oZ of medium to strong cheddar and add to the pan of sauce, combine and you should end up with a sauce of medium thickness a little like custard. Set aside for the pasta .

Step 4: Cooking the Pasta

I'm not going to tell anyone how to cook pasta but good pasta is the key to a good dish. A rule of thumb is 75g per person and 8-10 mins - al dente or not al dente is the question here!

I like firm but not crunchy and I definitely do not like melt in the mouth over cooked..... and I also see people not boiling their water first..... but who am I to say.....

Take 1/3 of a 500g packet of pasta boil 2litres of water in the kettle place water then pasta in a 9" pan then partially cover & let boil to your taste.

Step 5: Combining All the Ingredients

This is the best and final step of this absolutely delicious, simple fulfilling dish - your choice of fillings is down to your own preference and taste. I chose tuna & corn ? but you can use ham & Mushroom, chilli chicken or other combination that go with a light cheese & herb sauce.

Take half a 200 gm tin of drained corn & half a 160gm tin of drained tuna and add to the pasta - then mix - now empty the pan of sauce and mix gently through, on a low heat until combined.

We are now done and well done to you for sticking with me

Serve and enjoy, please rate and comment I G ;-)

Step 6: Corn Flour Vs Wheat Flour

I have made this sauce with both corn and wheat flours and I actually prefer the Corn. Reasons why: Taste it has next to no taste, unlike wheat flour which has an underlying earthy/ cut hay taste, which I do not like. Also the texture is more silky in appearance and you do not need a lot of it to thicken the sauce.

This also has a great benefit to the celiac or gluten intolerance sufferers - if you used corn or rice pasta, which can be more tenuous to cook, then you have a totally transferable recipe.