Tag Archives: macaroni

What’s the non copyrighted or trademarked name for Beefaroni?

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I’m gonna call it beefaroni anyway, because these names are just ridiculous:

The dish commonly sold as “Beefaroni” (a trademarked name owned by Conagra Brands) has several regional and generic names. Depending on where you are in the US, the most common non-trademarked names for this ground beef and macaroni tomato skillet are American Goulash, American Chop Suey, Slumgullion, or Johnny Marzetti. [1, 2, 3]

Right?

A white bowl full of homemade beefaroni - spiraling pasta with ground beef.
Boy are deez tasty.

At any rate, I was hungry for it… and I am not a fan of the Chef Boyardee stuff/ (Sorry, Chef!) We would have this occasionally when I was growing up, and it’s a comfort meal I guess. It’s easy enough, and safe for the beef part these days, pretty economical.

Below is how I do it. How do you do it, & what do you call it?

Stuff yinz need:

How to do it:

  1. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in a stock pot, ad the bouillon cubes, Italian blend, & Dash.
  2. Brown the ground beef in your skillet, hit it will all those spices… or whatever you got or like. We don’t measure here. Season until you think it’s too much, then keep going a little bit.
  3. Drop that Cavatappi or whatever pasta shape you dig into that water for 7 minutes or the recommended time on the box. Make sure you stir it up every once in a while.
  4. Drain the pasta, leave a lil’ bit of pasta water, return it to the warm yet off burner.
  5. Dump in the ground beef, the tomato soup, and stir like you practiced with the pasta.
  6. Put it in a bowl and eat it.

Notes?

  • Yeah, tomato soup! Not tomato sauce, pasta sauce, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, or any of that for me. This is cheap.
  • Obviously if you would prefer any of that, do it.
  • Sauteed onions, diced tomatoes, some type of beans, or even bell peppers would probably be great in this.
  • This is a memory I’m not messing with though. I’m keeping it basic and cheap.

There you have it. I know it hit the spot for me.

A close-up photo of a pot containing delicious spiraling cavatappi pasta with ground beef covered in condensed tomato soup. It's red and warm image overall.
Comfort Food / Struggle Meal

Crafty-Kraft Creamy Baked Mac n’ Cheese

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I have had it in my head for a while now that I wanted some of the homestyle creamy baked mac n’ cheese. Inspiration hit with the snow coming down today, wanting some comfort food, so I just did it. I had been wondering if you could use a box of Kraft as the start to “good” mac & cheese, too. I had some stuff in the ‘fridge & pantry to make it happen. Posting it here to remember what I did.

Creamy baked mac and cheese on a white plate, topped with golden breadcrumbs. The dish is served with crumbled crumbs scattered around.
A baked mac and cheese dish with a golden brown breadcrumb topping, placed on a green towel.

I didn’t really measure, but this is close…

Ingredients:

  • 2 boxes Kraft mac & cheese (noodles & powder packets)
  • ½ cup butter & ¼ cup butter (for later)
  • ½ cup flour
  • 1 block sharp cheddar cheese (16 oz.?), grated
  • 4 cubed chunks (approx. 1″ cubes) of Velveeta (I used the Aldi version)
  • 1 cup shredded colby jack cheese
  • 2½ cups 2% milk
  • ½ cup half & half
  • ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
  • ¾ plain breadcrumbs
  • yellow mustard (a dash)
  • ground mustard (to taste)
  • black pepper (to taste)
  • white pepper (to taste)
  • salt (to taste)
  • onion powder (to taste)
  • garlic powder (to taste)
  • table blend salt-free seasoning (to taste)

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.
  2. Boil the pasta in some water with bit of salt, for about 5 minutes… the time on the box overcooks them.
  3. Melt ½ cup butter in a cause pan on medium, stir in the flour (season it here), cook 2 or 3 min. until golden.
  4. Slowly stir in milk & half & half. (Season it here too.)
  5. Slowly stir in the grated sharp cheddar & chunks of Velveeta. I put the squirt of mustard in here. (Season it here too.)
  6. Slowly stir in one of the cheese powder packets from the Kraft box. (Season it here too.)
  7. Drain the pasta when it’s done while you’re doing all that, then put it in an 8″x8″ glass baking dish.
  8. Stir in your cheese sauce. (If I understand correctly, that was a roux, then a béchamel, then a mornay… right?) Season it again if you nasty, and you’re reading this, so I know you are.
  9. Melt the ¼ cup of butter in a small bowl with a handle. (Season it here too.)
  10. Stir the breadcrumbs, the other Kraft cheese packet, & the table blend seasoning into the butter bowl.
  11. Sprinkle the shredded colby jack on top of the cheese n’ macaroni.
  12. Spread the buttery cheesy breadcrumbs on that.
  13. Pop it in the oven for like 18 minutes.

Notes:

  • I popped it in for 20 minutes, and while the breadcrumbs got a little overdone, they weren’t quite burnt. I may cover it in foil for a bit next time, or put the breadcrumbs on after a bit of cooking?
  • I’ll use a bullion cube in with the macaroni next time. I do that with pasta a lot but was worried the Kraft cheese packets may be salty, they weren’t as bas as I expected.
  • I needed some grated parmesan shake cheese, but didn’t use any because I couldn’t find it. Ha ha.
  • What about crushed Cheeze-Its instead of breadcrumbs? What about bacon pieces in there?

Have you done this? Obviously I could just use regular pasta & forgo the Kraft powdered cheese sauce concoction. Got any tips or tricks? If you say nutmeg or cinnamon you can see yourself all the way out.

Share your thoughts in the comments!