Time to veer sharply away from the strawberry posts, and even away from desserts entirely. Today’s recipe is Cheeseburger Mac and Cheese.

The recipe I followed claimed you are supposed to use a 2 quart dish. I don’t know if she has a SUPER deep 2 quart dish or what, but when I was eyeballing the cooked macaroni and meat, it looked like way too much to fit in one 2 quart dish, so I added an 8X8″ dish as well, and it seemed like a good amount, but meant there was more surface area so we were short on the tomatoes that cover it. You live, you learn! I might go for a 5 quart dish next time, or try to find a super deep 2 quart one?

This one cooks in several parts. Before anything else, get some water on the stove so you can eventually cook your pasta. I, unthinkingly, put a huge pot of water on the tiniest stove burner, so that took foreeeever.

Once the water’s on the stove, start browning the sirloin, breaking it apart as it cooks. Once the meat is browned, remove it from the heat, drain off as much grease as you can/want to, and then add the salt, pepper, ketchup and mustard.

Man I love ketchup!

Stir it all in…

Kyle's got lightning fast stirring action!

And put it in a bowl off to the side.

Hopefully at this point your water is boiling and you can get the pasta going.

Put the skillet you used for the meat back on the stove and melt your butter in it. Whisk in the flour, and then slowly pour the condensed milk in. Bring to a simmer and cook 2 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan frequently.

There're a lot of little scraped up bits floating around in there, which strikes me as much better than a bunch of gross burnt bits stuck onto the pan.

The recipe then says to remove from the heat and stir in salt and cheese. I missed part of that, and stirred in the cheese still on the stove. It…still came out gooey and nice, so I’d say it’s not the hugest deal?

The cheese goes in.

And becomes a lovely sauce.

Stir in the pasta.

Spread the macaroni into your dish(es), and top with the meat. Spread the rest of the cheese on top, and then the tomatoes. Sprinkle the top with bread crumbs, and a light mist of cooking spray.

Does that look like it would all fit in the left dish?

Bake for 20 minutes, and then broil for 2.

Delicious!

Cheeseburger Mac & Cheese

Slightly adapted from Noble Pig

• 1 pound elbow macaroni
• 1 pound ground sirloin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 Tablespoons yellow mustard
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
• 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 2 medium-size tomatoes, thinly sliced (I would bump that up to 3 or four)
• 2-3 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Coat a 2 (+) quart oval baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boiling and cook pasta according to package directions.  Drain.

While pasta cooks, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add sirloin, breaking apart with a wooden spoon.  Cook 6 minutes until no longer pink.  Remove from the heat, drain meat, and stir in 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and the ketchup and mustard.  Transfer to a bowl.

Return skillet to medium heat and add butter.  Once melted, whisk in flour, then add milk in a thin stream.  Bring to a simmer and cook 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and whisk in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 2 cups of the cheese.  Stir in pasta.

Pour into prepared dish(es).  Top with meat mixture, remaining cheese, sliced tomatoes and bread crumbs. Spritz with nonstick cooking spray.

Bake for 20 minutes and increase heat to broil for 2 more minutes at the end.

Another great Mac and Cheese recipe from Noble Pig is her Cheesy Shell-Stuffed Shells.