Macaroni with Tomatoes (1919) ★★★★★

I think the last recipe I made from Vaughan's Vegetable Cook Book was Cooked Muskmelon, which...didn't exactly turn out as I had hoped. But this was a recipe I was keen to try!

Original Recipe:

MACARONI WITH TOMATOES.

Remove from each tomato the pips and watery substance it contains; put the tomatoes in a saucepan with a small piece of butter, pepper, salt, thyme and a bay leaf, and a few tablespoonfuls of gravy or stock, keep stirring until they are reduced to a pulp, then strain through a sieve, and pour over macaroni already boiled soft and cover with grated cheese; bake until a light brown.

The Verdict:

Gotta love vague recipes. I decided on using 5 roma tomatoes with about a tablespoon or two of butter. I chose roma tomatoes because they have less seeds and wateryness than other varieties. However, note that this did not make enough sauce to cover an 8x8 dish of pasta, since the tomatoes cook down quite a bit.
So this was tasty! Which I wasn't surprised about, because tomatoes + pasta + cheese is a classic combination. It did take a while for the tomatoes to simmer down, but overall this recipe is easy to make - its just a bit time consuming.
Also, this recipe calls for pushing the cooked tomatoes through a sieve. Honestly, I would rather have the chunks of tomato in my pasta, so if I ever made this again, I would dice the tomatoes and cook until soft and then just toss with the pasta.
Overall, though, very yummy! Five stars for this recipe.

Modernized Recipe:

(Adapted from Vaughan's Vegetable Cook Book)

TOMATOES, seeds and pulp removed and diced
BUTTER
PEPPER
SALT
THYME
1 BAY LEAF
Few tablespoons GRAVY or STOCK
MACARONI, cooked
CHEESE, grated

1. In a saucepan, add all ingredients except macaroni and cheese. Cook until the tomatoes are reduced to a pulp. Rub the tomatoes through a sieve, if desired.
2. Heat the oven to 350F and lightly grease a pan. Add the cooked macaroni to the pan. Pour the strained sauce over the macaroni and toss to coat. Cover with grated cheese. Bake until the cheese has melted.