Homemade Helper of Hamburger - My Kitchen Is Open

I haven’t had Hamburger Helper in quite some time but I have to tell you that as a child, it was one of my favorite things to make.

As an adult, thinking about the stuff from the box kind of makes me want to gag but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t thought about picking up a box at the store and making some.

I decided that I would make my own version of Hamburger Helper with added vegetables and I was quite happy with what I came up with.

Homemade Helper of Hamburger

Ground Beef Mixture:

1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1lb Lean ground Beef
1 tsp NO MSG Taco Seasoning
½ medium onion, diced
1 ½ c hot water + 1 c more
2 ½ c milk
2 c whole wheat elbow macaroni

16oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded and divided in half

Seasoning:

2 Tbsp Corn Starch
2 tsp Chili Powder
1 tsp NO MSG Taco Seasoning
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 ½ tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper

1 yellow squash, diced
1 small zucchini, diced

1. Combine all seasoning together in a small bowl, mix together and set aside.

2. In a large dutch oven or pot, heat the olive oil and then brown the ground beef with 1 tsp taco seasoning and diced onion. (I added the olive oil because I got 96/4 lean ground beed-it needed some fat)

2. Add 1 ½ cups of hot water, milk, pasta and spice mixture. Stir to combine.

3. Bring to a boil. This mixture will thicken quickly because of cornstarch. When it starts to thicken add the extra cup of water. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot and simmer for 8-10 minutes stirring occasionally until the pasta is tender. Since I used whole wheat pasta, it took almost the full 10 minutes.

4.Add the squash and zucchini and stir. Cook for 3 minutes.

5. Add half the shredded cheese and stir until melted through.

6. Season to taste. I had to add a little bit more of all the spices because the squash and zucchini muted some of the flavor but it was just a sprinkle of each one.