Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Beef Mac

I had a really tough time thinking of what to call this dish. The pictures don't do the taste of it justice.


If your trying to eat healthy and you're keeping up with your New Year's resolutions then keep reading. If you're trying to sneak vegetables into your picky eaters, keeping reading.
This dish is healthy, packed full of flavor, easy, and economical. So let's make some Beef Mac!

Put the metal blade on your food processor and turn it on. Drop in through the feed tube, 3 cloves of peeled garlic and process until minced, then add 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces, 1 8 to 10 ounce package of sliced baby bella mushrooms ( you can use button mushrooms if that's what you have on hand) and process until finely chopped. Turn off machine and add 1 large onion cut up and pulse until roughly chopped.

Brown 1 lb. of extra lean ground beef in a large high-sided skillet or large pot over medium-high heat. Break up the meat while it is browning. Once the meat is completely browned stir in the chopped vegetables, 2 teaspoons dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables start to soften and the mushrooms release their juices, about 5 minutes. At this point the baby bellas will turn brown and blend in with the browned ground meat. To your kids it will look like one big pot of ground beef. I was questioned about the orange pieces and told them it was a red bell pepper....ain't I a stinker?



Stir in 2 cups of water, 1 1/2 cups beef broth, 1/2 box (8 ounces) elbow macaroni and 2 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is tender, 8 to 10 minutes. You can't even imagine how good this smells!




Whisk 2 tablespoons of flour with 1/4 cup beef broth in a small bowl until smooth; stir into the hamburger mixture.



Stir in 1/2 cup low fat sour cream. Simmer, stirring often, until the sauce is thickened.





Serve garnished with chives or parsley.


Now you can got get a couple of scoops of Dulce de Leche ice cream! I'll show how to make this completely decadent ice cream Friday!


24 comments:

gigi said...

That sounds like comfort food to me, yum, yum. I love the way you sneak in their veggies. A mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do, you go girl.

Andrea said...

Sounds delicious! I'm going to add it to the line up this week! :)

jesse said...

Hahaha, you are one sneaky mom! I love this recipe and I bet all those shrooms only serve to add to the depth of the flavour!! Now if only I have a food processor... =(

Anonymous said...

Oh. My. God. Katherine, I love you. I need this beef mac. In fact, it's going on my list for next week. And I am drooling in anticipation for that dulce de leche ice cream. Beef and macaroni--how can I resist?

Debbie said...

Oh that looks so good and it would be a hit around here. I am keeping this recipe to try sometime soon. It also sounds pretty fairly simple and easy on the budget!!! Great!

tavolini said...

oh I LOVE dulce de leche! I'm very excited :)

This looks pretty good--I'm actually always trying to sneak more vegetables onto Tavo's plate ;)

Jersey Girl Cooks said...

A great winter meal.

Anonymous said...

A great family meal - yum!

Pam said...

It's snowing outside right now - this would be the perfect comfort food for a day like today.

Greg C said...

I made something similar last night but used egg noodles. I am so hungry.

Dewi said...

Do you believe if I tell you that I can not make a decent mac&cheese? I tried so many times, I have no idea why? I haven't gave up yet..
Now, I'm pretty intrigue with this recipe of yours. Sounds delicious Katherine!
Cheers,
Elra

Reeni said...

That is just perfect comfort food!! Warm and creamy and full of goodies!! What a sneaky chef you are!

Ralonda said...

Next on the list of things to purchase... Food Processor!
Looks like something that would be a hit around here... yum!

Marjie said...

Sneaky veggies, eh? Cute! Decadent ice cream? I'll be back!

Cathy said...

I absolutely cannot wait to make this. This sounds like the ultimate comfort food!

Rico said...

This beef Mac looks and sounds delicious...I must make it some day...
By the way, in reply to your query.
Mascarpone is a low fat white soft smooth cheese (technically is not a cheese) but you can use any low fat soft cheese, will produce identical results. Thank you for your visit to my blog and comment.appreciated!! xx

Jennifer said...

Oh my gosh that looks soo good I am starving!

Paula said...

Mmmmm ... beefy mac! Love the sneaky veggies! All hail the food processor! I like foods like this ... comforting and tasty. YUM!

pam said...

Oh my gosh! This sounds so good!

Cookie said...

I LOVE making mac and cheese with ground beef! I usually just toss in sliced mushrooms since they cook down quite a bit anyway but chopping them up in the food processor is a great idea!

NKP said...

Definitely comfort food! I love homemade versions of the classics!

Selba said...

When I read the title of the post, first crossed my mind is Beef burger like macdonald! Hehehe...

This Beef Mac is is much much much better!!! :)

La Bella Cooks said...

Now that is a satisfying meal. I can just imagine the taste. What a great recipe!

Peter M said...

i like this...alot and it speaks to the Hamburger Helper in me..but homegrown.