Comté Cheese & Spinach Pasta Bake with Hazelnut Crumble

A pasta bake is always popular, and this delicious recipe has the added advantage of having two of your five-a-day in it, namely spinach and spring onions. It makes a sensational midweek family meal and you can use any pasta shapes you have to hand, although I used penne pasta, which are my favourite! Serve this hearty pasta dish with seasonal salad leaves and crusty bread. You can use any age of Comté cheese in this recipe.

Ingredients

Serves 4

350g dried pasta
2 x bunches spring onions, trimmed and diced
2 x 260g packet fresh baby spinach
125g herb and garlic cream/soft cheese
125g crème fraiche
150g Comté cheese, grated, plus extra for topping
Salt and pepper
50g finely chopped toasted hazelnuts

1. Pre-heat oven to 200C/180CFan/350F.

2. Cook the pasta in boiling water according to the packet instructions. Drain well and add the diced onions, spinach, soft cheese, crème fraiche and the Comté cheese. Mix well and add a little extra crème fraiche if the mixture is too dry.

3. Spoon the pasta mixture into a large oven-proof dish. Scatter the hazelnuts over the top and sprinkle some extra Comté cheese over the cover the pasta.

4. Bake in pre-heated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the cheese has melted, is golden brown and bubbling.

5. Serve with salad and crusty bread.