Once upon a time there was a boy and a girl who moved to Minneapolis after college to whoop it up for a few years before settling down into adulthood, or whatever it is they call being a mid-upper twenty something.
The boy and the girl were dating, but lived in separate apartments. The girl liked to have the boy over for dinner as often as she could because she liked the boy a lot, but also because she knew what the boy would eat every night if left to his own devices.
See, while the girl liked to cook meals chock full of fresh veggies and protein (for the most part,) the boy had a weakness for boxed dinners that called for a pound of hamburger to “help” them along.
The meals were quick, cheap, and painless to prepare, but loaded with salt and weird ingredients.
“Disodium guanylate?” The girl once asked the boy, after looking at the ingredient list.
“I think that just means ‘extra delicious’.” The boy replied.
The boy and the girl ended up getting married and moving back to Iowa a few years later, and while they’ve been eating well ever since, he occasionally likes to think of the boxed dinners from his bachelor days and drool a little.
More in love with the boy than ever, the girl offered to whip up a homemade version of his favorite “flavor”, Cheeseburger Macaroni.
And the boy freaking LOVED IT. And guess what? The girl did too!
Ok. The jig is up. The boy is Ben, and the girl is me. ;) The rest of the story is true, however, including the part where Ben inhaled his bowl of Cheeseburger Macaroni. I literally gave him a bowl, went to snap a few pictures, and it was gone by the time I got back. Thanks for waiting!
The beauty of this meal is that it is inexpensive – I had all the ingredients on hand except for the hamburger to “help” bring the meal together – it’s made in one pot, so clean up is basically nil, and it’s ready in 20 minutes. 20 minutes!
Start by browning, and draining, one pound of ground beef.
Next, sprinkle in a rainbow of yummy seasonings and thickeners, including paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper and cornstarch.
Pour in water, skim milk,
and any short pasta – regular or gluten-free. I wanted to use elbow macaroni, but only had mini penne on hand. Still worked fine!
Stir everything together, pop a lid on top, and simmer the mixture until the pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes.
Finally, stir in a wee bit of sharp cheddar cheese, and it’s done!
Ultra cozy, ultra easy, and, most importantly, disodium guanylate free!
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Homemade Cheeseburger Helper
Description
Homemade Cheeseburger Helper is the healthier, homemade version of boxed Hamburger Helper. This gluten-free dinner recipe is incredibly delicious!
Ingredients
- 1lb lean ground beef
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup hot water
- 2 cups skim milk
- 1-1/2 cups dry gluten-free or regular elbow macaroni (or other small pasta)
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Directions
- Brown ground beef in a large skillet then drain and return to the skillet. Add cornstarch, seasonings, hot water, skim milk and pasta then stir to combine and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, place a lid on top, then simmer until pasta is al dente, stirring a few times.
- Turn off the heat then add cheddar cheese and stir until melted. Let stand for 5 minutes or until sauce has thickened then serve.
Notes
From Food.com
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
This meal is the ultimate in comfort food, shockingly easy to prepare, and so dang good. SO good! Enjoy!
Turkey mac n cheese recipe 02.07.2012
[…] and let sit for 5-10 minutes until sauce thickens before serving.2.1.7*Inspired by Iowa Girl Eats, Cheeseburger Macaroni /**/Tagged as: cheddar, cheese, pasta, peppers, spinach, turkey Cancel replyLeave a CommentName […]
Stephanie 02.01.2012
Made this last night and my junk food loving hubby loved it. Thanks so much for helping me find a better alternative to the nasty Hamburger Helper he loves so much!
Anna 02.01.2012
Do you use cow’s milk for this recipe? The only milk we regularly have on hand is unsweetened vanilla almond milk. I wonder if that would throw off the flavor?
Iowa Girl Eats 02.01.2012
I did use cow’s milk (we keep it on hand for Ben.) I’m not sure if the vanilla in the almond milk might throw the flavor off a bit, although it does have a teaspoon of sugar in the recipe, so maybe just omit that?
Anna 02.01.2012
Great idea to omit the sugar! I guess I should consider myself lucky that my husband prefers almond milk over cow’s. Thanks again :)
Emily 02.01.2012
do you think whole wheat penne would work too?? i’m a nut when it comes to my whole wheat pasta, and also it would save me a trip to the store!
Iowa Girl Eats 02.01.2012
For sure!
Katherine 02.01.2012
Thanks for posting this! I made it for dinner and it was awesome. I used to love this type of Hamburger helper but it got to the point where I couldn’t eat it because it was so processed it would make me sick. I love that I now have a go to recipe I can use. Thanks again!
Leslie 02.01.2012
Um hello gorgeous. I think I may win “wife of the year” award tonight when I make this. Thanks for sharing the recipe, can’t wait to try it!!
karenc 01.31.2012
We had this for dinner Monday night and it WAS awesome! Never the boxed stuff again!
Carrie @ Little Patch of Heaven Homestead 01.30.2012
I just made this tonight and it was awesome! Hubz loved Hamburger Helper as a child. I won’t touch the stuff as an adult, but this recipe allowed us to meet in the middle. Thanks for posting it! I was hoping to try the kale chips too, but our grocery was out of them. We had a spinach salad on the side instead. Love your blog!
Susannah 01.30.2012
My kids gobble up Hamburger Helper, but up until the middle of last year, I stopped making it for them. I just couldn’t get over all the additives, etc. I’m so glad you posted this recipe. I made it tonight, and it was enjoyed by all. Super quick, super easy and super tasty! I used lean ground beef and reduced fat cheddar cheese. Next time, I’ll make it with ground turkey for an even healthier meal!
Kara 01.30.2012
I made it for dinner last night and it was awesome! I love easy recipes! Thanks!
Holly 01.29.2012
I just made this pasta for dinner. It’s delicious!
BUT – how in the world do you get your meat to brown so perfectly and neatly? Mine looks like a total mess! The pieces are all different sizes/colors, etc. Good thing I’m not blogging about my food :)
Thanks for all the great recipes!
Iowa Girl Eats 01.30.2012
I use a potato masher like this one! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004OCL9/ref=asc_df_B00004OCL91879851?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=asn&creative=395093&creativeASIN=B00004OCL9
Val 01.29.2012
Kale chips are the BEST. My husband makes them perfect and loves them too.
Shannon 01.29.2012
Ok I feel silly… I read this the other day and thought you baked it… So ignore most of my comment above haha. Revised question: would there be any way to cook this ahead of time?
Iowa Girl Eats 01.30.2012
You could probably cook it the day before, but I’m afraid it wouldn’t be as creamy. You could save time by combining the cornstarch and spices the day before though!
Shannon 01.31.2012
Thank you! I made this last night and it was amazing! I took it to a pot luck for our church group and everyone kept asking if it was boxed or homemade! I told everyone over and over again it was homemade, but it tasted so good they didn’t believe me! I used mini piccolini from Barilla and it was the perfect size and shape. The only thing I did in advance (because I didn’t see your comment until is was too late) was brown the ground beef until it was about 95% cooked then reheated/ finished cooking it the next day and it turned out perfect! This was such a simple and yummy dish… thank you so much for the recipe! I look forward to your daily posts!
Shannon 01.29.2012
How would I do this if I needed to make it a day in advance? Would it get soggy if I mixed everything together and cooked it the next day, or should I go ahead and cook it then re heat it then next day? Sorry if this sounds confusing!! Thank you!
Tee @ She Writes, Bites, and Window Shops 01.28.2012
Ben sounds exactly like my fiance! I make kale chips all the time and he LOVES them – but I also add a ton of garlic powder to them, which I think is why he eats them. We’ll both eat pretty much anything loaded with garlic!
elizabeth 01.28.2012
When do you put in the cornstarch?
Iowa Girl Eats 01.30.2012
Sorry! You put it in with the seasonings. I fixed the recipe too. Thanks for pointing that out!
Elizabeth 01.30.2012
Thanks for letting me know. I added it after with the chesse and I don’t think it was as “held together” (if you know what I mean) as it should have been.
Chris 01.28.2012
Just popped my kale into the oven & waiting (impatiently) for it to turn into “kale chips”! I was not planning on having these with my lunch but the bag of pre-cut kale screamed my name while at Hy-Vee this morning.
maren 01.28.2012
I made this last night for my family, big hit! Thanks!
Life's a Bowl 01.27.2012
I’ve never made kale chips but have always wanted to! I think Ryan would totes be down for trying them if I served them with a side of cheeseburger mac!
elizabeths 01.27.2012
Omg just ate dinner and this was soooooooo good! And the kale chips? Giiiiiiirrrrrlllll don’t get me started. These were so flippin good. My husband and I devoured them! So making these on a weekly basis. Quick question tho…do you lose some of the nutritional value when you cook the kale? Just curios.
Iowa Girl Eats 01.30.2012
I tried to find the answer to that, with no avail. I suppose eating it baked is healthier than not eating it at all, though?! :)