Rachael Ray’s Cheeseburger Mac and Cheese

My friend, Candice, led me to this recipe quite some time ago.  I’ve made it a handful of times since then.  It’s delicious, ESPECIALLY with the pickles and tomatoes on top.  It gives you a real cheeseburger experience!

I made this a couple days in advance for my mother’s household when she had surgery recently, and it assembled together nicely when they went to make it.  I just kept the meatballs, sauce, and pasta separately and had them put it together and cook it. 

This recipe layers nicely in a 9x13 pan – pasta, cheese sauce, meatballs, and cheese before broiling at the end.  We have enough for the six of us for dinner, plus leftovers!

Enjoy!

(Rachael Ray has instructions on her site for freezing the casserole ahead of time, too. )

 

Cheeseburger Mac and Cheese

Yields: 4 to 6 servings

• 1 pound cavatappi pasta (I use spiral)
• 1 pound ground sirloin
• 1 tablespoon (about a palmful) grill seasoning
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup yellow mustard
• 3 tablespoons EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 medium red onion, chopped (yellow works wonderfully, too!)
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1 1/4 cups grated yellow cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 1/4 cups grated Swiss cheese, divided
• 3 small tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 deli-style pickle, chopped

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Place a large pot of salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. Add pasta to boiling water and cook just shy of al dente, according to package directions. Drain the cooked pasta and reserve.

In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine the ground sirloin with the grill seasoning, ketchup and yellow mustard. Grab about a tablespoon of meat in your hand and roll it into a small ball. Place the mini meatballs onto a baking sheet, drizzle with 2 tablespoons of EVOO and bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes. Turn off the oven and turn on the broiler.

While the mini meatballs are in the oven, heat a large saucepot over medium-high heat with 1 turn of the pan of EVOO, about 1 tablespoon, and the butter. Cook the red onion with some salt and pepper until softened, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle flour over top and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk in the milk, season with salt and pepper, and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.

Remove sauce from heat and whisk in 1 cup of each cheese. Add the drained pasta to the cheese sauce along with the baked meatballs and toss to combine. Pour everything out into a casserole dish and sprinkle with the remaining cheddar and Swiss cheeses.

If serving immediately, toss the mac under the broiler until the top is golden brown and bubbly. Top with the chopped tomatoes and pickles, and serve.