Homemade cheeseburger mac a healthier take on Hamburger Helper

Nearly twenty years ago, Hamburger Helper’s Cheeseburger Macaroni and I were good buddies. At the time, I was single and working an 8-to-5, Monday-through-Friday job. Like most folks back then, I wanted to make a quick, tasty dinner as inexpensively as possible.

At my local supermarket, they frequently put Hamburger Helper on sale 10 for $10. That’s right, a buck a box. Add a pound of ground beef, and you have a somewhat tasty, one-pan, budgetary delight — a bargain.

Did I read the ingredient list on the side of that box? No.

Was I as focused on healthy meals as I am now? No.

If I’d looked at the ingredients, I would have seen the following: “Enriched Macaroni, Corn Starch, Salt, Modified Whey, and Sugar.” OK, so far.

Next on the list: Tomato, Onion, Vegetable Oil (canola, soybean, and/or sunflower oil), Citric Acid, Whey, Maltodextrin, Garlic, Spice, Cheddar Cheese (cultured milk, salt, enzymes), Color (yellows 5 & 6, yellow lakes 5 & 6, annatto & turmeric extract).

Many of those are OK. My issues are with canola and soybean oil, since there is a 95% chance that they are both from (Monsanto and now Bayer) Round-up ready GMO seeds, which means they were sprayed with Round-up. In my opinion, not good.

Next, color. The first four colors (the yellows) are “artificial,” which, again, in my opinion, are questionable.

There were other ingredients like monoglycerides (an emulsifier), gum Arabic (a stabilizer and thickener), sodium phosphate (a thickener and emulsifier), and silicon dioxide (an anti-caking agent).

Last week, I had a hankering for Hamburger Helper’s Cheeseburger Macaroni and decided that if I wanted a version with which I would be totally pleased, I would have to make it myself.

A search for “homemade” recipes turned up quite a few, and the one that seemed like it mirrored the box version was Amy Nash’s at houseofnasheats.com.

My version went even further than Nash’s. Here’s how:

I used organic 93% lean ground beef, and organic products for the cornstarch, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, sugar, and black pepper. I went with organic whole milk, organic sharp cheddar cheese that I grated, and, finally, gluten-free, organic, brown rice-based macaroni pasta. Plus, as I used to, I added baby peas.

Once the ingredients were gathered and the cheese grated, I brought out the same skillet I’d used years ago and began browning and breaking up the ground beef. Next, I sprinkled all the dry ingredients over the browned meat and stirred it together. Then I added hot water (remember that from the boxed version?), milk, frozen peas, and pasta, stirring it all together. I reduced the heat to low-medium, covered my skillet, and let it simmer (stirring once in a while) for 10 minutes. Finally, I stirred in the grated cheese and let it sit for 5 minutes. Topping it with chopped parsley gave it some nice color, and to the table it went.

My cheeseburger macaroni was creamy, cheesy and tasted better (no surprise) than the boxed version. For a stroll down Memory Lane, give it a try.

• Don Mauer welcomes questions, comments and recipe makeover requests. Write to him at 1leanwizard@gmail.com.

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Memory Lane Cheeseburger Macaroni

1 pound 93% lean ground beef*

2 tablespoons cornstarch*

1 tablespoon sweet paprika*

1½ teaspoons garlic powder*

1½ teaspoons onion powder*

1½ teaspoons sea salt

1 teaspoon granulated cane sugar*

½ teaspoon ground black pepper*

2 cups hot water

1½ cups whole milk*

1 cup frozen baby peas*

6 ounces (about 2 cups) gluten-free dry macaroni*

6 ounces (about 2 cups) grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese*

¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley*

Place a large skillet over medium-high heat and, when hot, add the ground beef and begin browning, breaking it up with a spatula’s edge until it loses its pink color.

Distribute cornstarch, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, sugar, and pepper over the browned meat, stirring well to distribute.

Add and stir in the hot water, milk, baby peas, and macaroni. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and gently simmer for about 10 minutes.

Distribute and stir in the grated cheddar cheese, stirring until the cheese melts into the sauce, about 1 minute. Remove the skillet from the heat and let it stand for 5 minutes. The sauce should thicken a bit. Garnish with the chopped parsley. Serves 6.

* Note: I used organic.

Suggestions: Try adding sweet green or red peppers instead of peas, or using smoked paprika instead of sweet paprika, or ground pork or lamb, sweet or hot Italian sausage, instead of ground beef.

Nutrition values per serving: 402 calories (39.4% from fat), 17.6 g fat (11 g saturated fat), 32 g carbohydrates (29.8 net carbs), 5 g sugars, 2.4 g fiber, 34 g protein, 84 mg cholesterol, 831 mg sodium. SaltSense: Omitting the added sea salt reduces sodium per serving to 581 milligrams.