Go Back

Cheesy-Mac-n-Beef

Akin to Hamburger Helper, but homemade
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Course Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 2 people

Equipment

  • Large Frying Pan
  • Medium Pot Optional (can cook pasta in step 8)

Ingredients
  

  • 2 strips bacon
  • 1 ea small sweet onion diced
  • ½ lbs lean ground beef Can be substituted with almost any protein
  • 1 pinch kosher salt
  • 1 pinch black pepper
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • ½ tsp smoked paprika
  • ¼ tsp onion powder
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
  • ½ tbsp dried parsley
  • ½ tsp dried oregano
  • ½ tbsp tomato paste
  • ¾ cup chicken stock
  • ⅛ cup cream cheese
  • ¾ cup heavy cream
  • ½ lbs shredded or grated cheese I use mostly sharp cheddar with some parmesan
  • ½ lbs elbow mac use your favorite noodle

Instructions
 

  • Start cooking pasta noodles to desired doneness according to the box, recommend 1 minute less than listed on the box to finish the noodles with the rest of the meal. Strain and set cooked noodles aside reserving a small amount of the pasta water.
  • chop the bacon into pieces and toss into frying pan, start to cook until fat starts to render out over medium heat
  • add ground beef salt and pepper and start to cook down until mostly browned
  • add onion and start to cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. If there’s a lot of grease from the ground beef/bacon you may want to drain some off at this point.
  • add garlic and spices, cook for an additional 1-2 minutes or un til beef is fully browned and garlic is fragrant
  • Add tomato paste, stir this in and cook for an additional minute
  • Add chicken stock and reduce heat to a low simmer and cook down until almost completely reduced. Don’t forget to scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan for a great flavor boost.
  • Add cream cheese and start to stir in slowly adding heavy cream, bring to a low simmer. If you want you can add uncooked pasta noodles now and cook them directly in the chicken stock/heavy cream; you may need to add an additional 1 cup of water or chicken stock, just cover and cook for about 1 minute less than listed on the box, then remove the lid and reduce the liquid down.
  • add shredded/grated cheese and stir in until melted
  • If you pre-cooked the noodles now would be a good time to add them and stir everything to evenly mix.
  • Serve immediately

Notes

Recommend serving with cooked broccoli to add some veggies or a side salad to add some contrast to the meal.