Cheese and Tomato Macaroni

This version of macaroni cheese skips the hassle of making cheese sauce, and the roasted cherry tomatoes add extra flavour.

250g cherry tomatoes
1 tblsp olive oil
350g dried macaroni
250g tub mascarpone cheese
1 tblsp Dijon mustard
300g fontina cheese, coarsely grated
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 220C. Place cherry tomatoes in a 2 litre ovenproof dish. Drizzle over the olive oil and season with salt and pepper, then roast for 15 minutes until the tomatoes have softened slightly and the skins have split.

2. Meanwhile cook the macaroni in a large pan of boiling salted water according to the packet instructions until al dente.

3. In a bowl, combine the mascarpone, mustard and fontina cheese, stirring until evenly blended.

4. Drain the pasta and return to the pan. Stir in the cheese mixture, then the roasted tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Tip the mixture back into the ovenproof dish used for the tomatoes. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and bubbling. Leave to stand for a few minutes, then serve straight from the dish.

Another Silvana Franco recipe from Simple Ways to Success. I had trouble finding the fontina cheese so replaced it with cheddar.