Homemade Hamburger Helper Recipe

I am always on the lookout for new recipes. Unfortunately, sometimes the children aren’t to thrilled with me when I try something “new”. I noticed on Pinterest recently there has been TONS of homemade hamburger helper recipes. I will admit I do love hamburger helper on occasion, but I was interested to see how the homemade version would turn out. I took a look at a few recipes and made a few changes to it.  I was pleasantly surprised how GOOD it was!! I will definitely be making this again, and it was a hit with the kids!! Garlic bread is a must with this!

I added a twist to the recipe, with chopped up zucchini which is completely optional. But let me tell you it was so yummy!

Homemade Hamburger Helper

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef

1 small onion

1 teaspoon paprika

pinch to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups beef broth

2 cups macaroni, uncooked

1 (80z) can tomato sauce

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 small zucchini chopped (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

Note: While making this I realized I was out of tomato sauce, I substituted 3/4 cup of ketchup with a pinch of italian seasonings. Also in place of the paprika and cayenne, I used 1 1/2 teaspoons of chili powder.

Instructions

• Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Brown the ground beef, onion, zucchini, dry seasonings, salt and pepper.

• Stir in the milk, broth,macaroni and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 10-12 minutes or until pasta is tender. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking
• Stir in Cheddar cheese until melted