My kids like Hamburger Helper. I’ve rarely cooked it for dinner, but when they were younger I would use it on the rare babysitter nights and then later on the rare “on your own” nights once they were old enough to cook safely.
I did play around with some hamburger helper-like mixes for a while and the taste was good but we just didn’t use them often enough to justify mixing this all up. Then I just stopped making them and would just buy the danged box for a “treat” now and then.
Reading through some food blogs this morning I ran across Ezra Pound Cake’s version of No-Helper Cheeseburger Macaroni. I tried it tonight, pretty much true to her version with perhaps a bit more cheese…because the last bit wasn’t worth saving.
We liked it. It was a bit “sweet” for our taste but good. I think next time I might try a little less ketchup..and maybe more mustard or add some vinegar. I did use prepared mustard. The recipe didn’t specify but I guessed.
Edited to add: I did later play around and came up with this version of hamburger goulash.
Since we were sort of on a retro night and had a big green salad last night I just cut some carrots and celery up and mixed a buttermilk-honey dressing up I found in Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition – 2006
Buttermilk Honey Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup buttermilk
- 3 Tbs honey
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1 scallion minced
- pinch of ground red pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Whisk everything together except the olive oil, then add the oil while whisking.
I’m still looking for a good homemade “Ranch-like” dressing if anyone has a recipe to share. We don’t actually like the bottled stuff but do like the Ranch dressings we get in restaurants.
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