Post by nana on Jan 23, 2020 11:00:18 GMT -5
It's been quiet as a tomb here lately! This is perhaps not the world's most gourmet recipe, but it was a crowd pleaser last crockpot night and my grandson wanted to make sure I gave his mom the recipe!
As always, feel free to adjust the amounts of seasonings. I think I put a bit more mustard and worcestershire than called for...
1tsp olive oil
1 lb lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups beef or chicken broth
1 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tsp garlic powder
1tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp mustard
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb elbow macaroni
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
2 cups milk
8oz shredded cheddar
sliced dill pickles
In a heavy bottomed pot big enough to hold a pound of cooked macaroni brown the ground beef, add the onion, and continue cooking until meat is cooked through and onions are softened.
Add the rest of the ingredients up to and including the macaroni. Stir to combine, bring to a boil, and then turn down and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the macaroni is al dente and liquid is mostly absorbed. I found that a pound of macaroni needed a bit more than the three cups of liquid the recipe called for. Add a bit more water or broth if you need to.
Meanwhile, in another pan, melt the butter on medium high heat, stir in the flour, whisk until it's smooth and starts to bubble, then add the milk and whisk until smooth again and the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese until melted and smooth.
Add the cheese sauce to the macaroni/beef mixture and stir to combine.
I then transferred the whole thing to a 9x13 baking dish and covered it with the dill pickle slices, which is what really put it over the top, as far as I'm concerned! The original recipe called for putting pickle relish in with the cheese sauce, but I thought it might do funky things to the sauce--mixing pickle relish into something milky did not sound good to me. But the layer of pickles on top made it look better, and it was definitely the hit of the evening. When you bring home an empty dish you know you have a winner!
As always, feel free to adjust the amounts of seasonings. I think I put a bit more mustard and worcestershire than called for...
1tsp olive oil
1 lb lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups beef or chicken broth
1 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tsp garlic powder
1tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp mustard
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb elbow macaroni
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
2 cups milk
8oz shredded cheddar
sliced dill pickles
In a heavy bottomed pot big enough to hold a pound of cooked macaroni brown the ground beef, add the onion, and continue cooking until meat is cooked through and onions are softened.
Add the rest of the ingredients up to and including the macaroni. Stir to combine, bring to a boil, and then turn down and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the macaroni is al dente and liquid is mostly absorbed. I found that a pound of macaroni needed a bit more than the three cups of liquid the recipe called for. Add a bit more water or broth if you need to.
Meanwhile, in another pan, melt the butter on medium high heat, stir in the flour, whisk until it's smooth and starts to bubble, then add the milk and whisk until smooth again and the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese until melted and smooth.
Add the cheese sauce to the macaroni/beef mixture and stir to combine.
I then transferred the whole thing to a 9x13 baking dish and covered it with the dill pickle slices, which is what really put it over the top, as far as I'm concerned! The original recipe called for putting pickle relish in with the cheese sauce, but I thought it might do funky things to the sauce--mixing pickle relish into something milky did not sound good to me. But the layer of pickles on top made it look better, and it was definitely the hit of the evening. When you bring home an empty dish you know you have a winner!