Bean and Macaroni Skillet

With all the things going on around here lately (check out the family blog to learn more) I haven't posted anything in a while. But I did make a recipe the other day  that I have wanted to add to the list here. granted, it was a very strange preparation, but more of that later. This is an EXCELLENT thing to cook when you are camping, and this prep time was more like that than anything.
The Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 (28 oz) can Bush's Baked Beans, any flavor (not pictured)
1 large onion, chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes
2/3 cup uncooked elbow macaroni
1 tsp chili powder (optional)

Put the beef and the onion in a large skillet and put your skillet on the stove.

AAAAAHHHH!!!! Where's my stove?!!

Okay, you don't have a stove right now because you are having tile laid in your kitchen. Time to improvise... If you were camping you could use your propane stove. Hey! Your grill has a gas burner on the side!!

So, crisis averted. Brown the meat and onion until cooked through. Drain any fat.

Add remaining ingredients and stir well.

Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer for 20 minutes or until noodles are tender.

After this rather unorthodox preparation, what does the jury say?

"MMMMMMMM! Good!"

Menu 4/9 - 4/15--2011

Menu stuff is changing here in Chaosville. Since I more often than not am subbing on Fridays, my grocery shopping tends to wait until Saturday. I am trying to stay ahead of that by having enough on hand to cover Fridays too. I may even try to switch thngs up a lot and do the shopping and planning on Mondays but I am not quite there yet! For now, here we go:
Saturday--Grilled cheese and soup
Sunday--Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
Monday--Oven Fried Chicken nuggets with mac & cheese
Tuesday--Chimichurri Casserole

Wednesday--Rotisserie chicken and pasta salad
Thursday--Italian Crescent Casserole
Friday--Steaks and mashed potatoes with Ranch Style beans and salad

Hamburger Salad

**DISCLAIMER** I did not create this recipe because we were on a low carb diet or anything like that. If memory serves, what happened was, I had bought buns but they were moldy when I went to use them. Don't you hate stuff like that?! In any case it turned out to be a happy accident because we really liked the meal and throw it on the menu now and again on purpose.
The Ingredients

1 pound hamburger meat (I have also used ground turkey)
1 pound ground pork
1/2 cup diced onion
3 slices of bacon
Seasoned salt
Worcestershire Sauce
Burger toppings (not pictured)

First things, first, fry up the bacon.

While that works, dice the onion you need diced and cut the rest into slices.

Add the diced onion, beef and pork in a large bowl. Top with seasonings. Use whatever you like for burger patties. When the bacon is done, chop it up and add it too.

Mix it up using your hands.

When it's mixed, pat it all down in the bottom of the bowl.

Make an X with your hands to give you an idea of how many patties you can make. I make 5 since there are 5 of us.

Shape the patties. Try not to make them too thick or they won't get done in the middle before they burn on the outside.

Remember the onion you sliced? Pour off most of the bacon grease and add the onion. Saute over medium heat until translucent.

Now get your plate ready while the patties and onions cook. Pile on your favorite burger toppings. I'll take some spinach, tomato, bourbon mustard, ketchup, miracle whip and pickle please.

Don't forget the cheese!

Patties are done!

And the Coup de Grace...onions. Bon appetit!!

 

***UPDATE***

 

My father-in-law recently let me in on a great secret for hamburger patties. Mix in a pound of ground pork for every pound of ground beef you use. Deelish!!