Macaroni and Cheese recipe has been around for centuries. People believe it originated in Italy in the 13th Century. It probably was created long before that but a written recipe was discovered in one of the oldest medieval Cookbooks called "Liber de Coquina" (Book of Cooking).
Everyone has their own recipe for Mac & Cheese and of course everyone believes theirs is the best. They are probably right. I have tasted some phenomenal Mac & Cheese dishes made by some serious good cooks and I have had some not so good Mac & Cheese dishes. Of course I had to add some Meat to this dish. You could add any proteins to this dish and it would taste great. I chose ground meat but you could have chicken, shrimp, crab, etc. Use you imagination and have fun with it.
Over the years I have made a lot of Mac & Cheese. Having 4 kids it was a great way to feed them and their friends. I use to love to see their excitement shake every time they saw me cooking it. My youngest daughter Chastina who is 26 years old, still did the shake just a couple of years ago when I made a baked version lol. My grandchildren loved this recipe as I had to use them as my food testers. They told me it was website worthy.
This recipe is not baked. I wanted some really cheesy and saucy mac & cheese similar to Hamburger Helper. I love cream sauces, especially on pasta. I use to cook Hamburger Helper for quick dinners but I found that the taste was changing dramatically. It just didn't taste like it used to. Then I decided to look at the ingredients. Ouch there are so many words that you can't even pronounce, never mind know what they are. Then the sodium is out of this world, 570mg of sodium per cup prepared. An average serving per person in a family would be 2 cups. That is 1140mg in one meal. My cardiologist would have a fit if I ate that.
So I had to come up with my own recipe. It has taken years of trying different methods and I finally came up with the exact taste and perfect cheese sauce and seasonings. I had to share this recipe with all of you. It is easy and the ingredients are minimal. It is just a Delight to eat.
Of course critique it to your tastes and I am sure it could be prepared as a baked casserole as well. I really hope you and your family and friends will really enjoy it. I bet there will not be any leftovers. 😊
I like getting all of my ingredients ready in advance so that once I start cooking, I can add ingredients without any interruptions. I like to prepare my vegetables first so that my utensils and cutting boards are not contaminated by raw meat.
Chop up red bell pepper. onion, garlic.
In a small ramekin dish, place measurements of salt and pepper, beef bouillon and garlic powder. Mix the spices together.
Heat a large non-stick pan with oil. Add ground beef and seasoning. Brown meat stirring occasionally.
Once ground beef is almost browned add in onions and red pepper and sauté till onions are translucent and ground beef is no longer pink. If you are using mushrooms add them to the pan now and sauté with the onions, peppers and ground beef.
Measure out Ketchup, tomato paste and beef broth. I prefer to do this instead of just adding it from the packaging. This eliminates overpouring. Nothing is worse for a recipe than too much of an ingredient. You can't take it back.
Once ground beef is browned, stir in ketchup and tomato paste . Let it simmer for 10 mins to flavor the ground beef mixture well. Add in broth and water You can add a little salt & pepper and garlic powder to the broth as well. Season to your taste.
Stir sauce and let it simmer for 1/2 hour so all those great flavors that were just added will enhance the sauce.
This recipe is great because you don't have to cook your pasta in a separate pot. All you have to do is add the macaroni right into the hot bubbling sauce.
Cook macaroni to package directions. I usually notice it is ready around 10 - 12 mins.
Once macaroni is cook add Cheese sauce.
The best part of this recipe is the fantastic cheese sauce that is added at the end.
Melt butter in a saucepan. Add flour and paprika, stir to make a roux.
The roux color is dark now but it will lighten up with the cream and cheese.
The paprika not only gives the sauce great seasoning but it also helps create that great orange color to a perfect cheese sauce.
Add in the milk a little at a time and whisk continuously so that you don't get any lumps.
Add in 3/4 of cheese and stir consistently to ensure a smooth velvety texture.
The sauce will thicken.
Add Cheese Sauce to pan with macaroni and beef.
Sprinkle the 1/4 cup of cheese over top and then add parsley.
Cover and let cheese melt. All you have to do now is serve yourself a big bowl and enjoy. Servings 4
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Thank you for visiting Meat and More Recipes. It gives me great joy to share my version of recipes with you and your family and friends. Feel free to adjust or add any ingredients you like to make it more enjoyable for your tastes.