Homemade Hamburger Helper

I've got another ground beef recipe for you! It's the only protein all 4 of us will eat, so there's a lot of ground beef cooking going on in this house. This one is comfort food at it's best.....Homemade Hamburger Helper! Are you excited? I was pretty sure Adam would love this meal as soon as I found the recipe. And I was right. It's even pretty healthy if you use whole grain pasta and add a green vegetable on the side.

I made the mistake of only making 1/2 the recipe. Don't make that same mistake. Make the whole thing. It will be eaten. Unless of course you don't like cheesy comfort food. In that case you're just weird*.

HOMEMADE HAMBURGER HELPER

Ingredients:
1lb 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 whole grain elbow macaroni (or other small pasta)
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Brown ground beef in a large skillet or pot. Drain and return to pan.
2. Add in cornstarch, seasonings, hot water, skim milk and pasta. Stir to combine, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, place a lid on top, and simmer for 10 minutes, or until pasta is al dente, stirring a couple of times.
3. Turn off the heat and stir in cheddar cheese until melted. Let stand for 5 minutes, or until sauce is thickened.

Enjoy!


*Apparently my children are weird. Lucas wouldn't touch this. When we tried to get Ryan to take a bite, he almost threw up from crying so hard. Sheesh. But if you can get your kids to try this, I bet they will love it.