This is a Scott meal (aka Mr. Yay! For Food). He is the brains behind the recipe and I will admit he took it upon himself to make the entire dish (I was there giving emotional support, ha). Photos were a shared endeavour, although he did most of the picture taking. I came in the end to take a few final shots, but mostly to eat because… hunger and it smelled so good!

The sauce has all the key ingredients of a basic bechamel (white) sauce with cheese. It should be noted that in a lot of bechamel sauce recipes, milk is usually scalded in another saucepan before adding to the roux (fat and flour mixture). We usually skip that part (including in this recipe) because we’re rebels (and lazy). The trick is to just keep whisking to prevent clumps from forming. The sauce turned out delish, creamy, and thick. The jalapeno jack cheese gives it a bit of kick as well.

In addition, total time is cut as you do not need to pre-boil your pasta; it cooks in the skillet, sucking up the lovely sauce as it bakes. This recipe uses rigatoni because it holds its shape well in the thick sauce. The breadcrumb crust is crunchy, cheesy, and contrasts well with the creamy sauce and tender pasta and broccoli. Now onto the recipe.

Mise en place {see Ingredients for amounts}. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

On low heat, melt the butter and add the flour, whisking constantly. It will clump up at first and then smooth out.

Increase heat to medium and slowly add the milk, whisking constantly. Once milk begins to bubble and thicken slightly, add cheese and whisk for another 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Once sauce is thicken, stir in pasta and broccoli.

Top with breadcrumbs and cheese.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the crust is golden-brown and the pasta and broccoli is tender. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

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