I love bacon, cheeseburgers, and macaroni and cheese. What I don’t understand is why it took me so long to combine the three to create Bacon Cheeseburger Macaroni and Cheese. This stuff is crazy delicious. It turned out even better than I had hoped… I couldn’t stop eating it.
Bacon Cheeseburger Macaroni and Cheese truly captures the taste of a bacon cheeseburger – but in macaroni and cheese form. And hopefully we can agree that most things get better when they are transformed into macaroni and cheese.
To create this macaroni and cheese, I started by sautéing ground sirloin with some chopped onion and garlic. The cheese sauce is a blend of cheddar and American cheeses seasoned with brown mustard and a touch of sriracha. Cheddar and American cheese are the most common cheeses used on burgers, and the mustard and sriracha work together to mimick the taste of animal sauce.
You can’t have a burger without a slice of lettuce and tomato. It didn’t make sense to add lettuce to macaroni and cheese, so instead I tore up baby spinach and added it to the macaroni and cheese just before serving. The sliced grape tomatoes simmer in the sauce for just a minute, so they are still bursting with fresh flavor. I chose to slice grape tomatoes in half knowing that they would hold their shape and not fall apart as much as diced tomatoes. The final touch is a sprinkle of chopped bacon.
I love that this Bacon Cheeseburger Macaroni and Cheese incorporated all the food groups. It's got meat, carbs, and veggies. You can adjust the proportions of meat and veggies. I wanted this macaroni and cheese to be super meaty, but you could certainly add more tomatoes and spinach.
The total preparation time is just about 30 minutes, and this recipe easily makes four servings. This is basically a super sophisticated version of hamburger helper.
Notes: I used ground sirloin instead of ground beef because it is a better cut of meat, and I prefer it. It is a leaner cut of meat, so there wasn't grease in the pan after I cooked the beef. If you use standard ground beef, you may have some excess grease in the bottom of the skillet once the beef has browned. If that is the case, just drain it.
If you are not in America, and can't find American cheese, you can add more cheddar or substitute with another cheese that you love.
If you want to try another delicious bacon cheeseburger recipe - try these bacon cheeseburger tacos - you won't regret it.
How to Make Bacon Cheeseburger Macaroni and Cheese:
Bacon Cheeseburger Macaroni and Cheese
Ingredients
- 2 slices of Bacon
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- ½ cup finely chopped White Onion
- 2 cloves of Garlic crushed or minced
- 1 pound Ground Sirloin
- Salt and Pepper
- 3 cups Tubular Pasta
- 1 ½ tablespoons Butter
- 3 tablespoons Flour
- 2 cups Milk I used 1%
- 1 ¼ cup cubed Sharp Cheddar
- 4 slices of American Cheese standard size sandwich slices
- 1 teaspoon Spicy Brown Mustard
- ½ teaspoon Sriracha or more to taste
- 1 cup Grape or Cherry Tomatoes sliced in half
- 2 cups of Spinach
Instructions
- Start by cooking the bacon. Heat your oven to 350 degrees and place the bacon on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake the bacon for 12-15 minutes, until it is as crispy as you like it. When you remove the bacon from the oven, place it on a paper towel and blot any excess grease.
- As the bacon is cooking, place a pot of salted water on the stove to boil.
- While you are waiting for the water to boil, get to work on the meat. Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, and let cook for 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and let cook for another minute. Add the beef, season with salt and pepper, and use a spatula to break up the meat and stir in the onion and garlic. Cook until the beef has browned, and then set aside.
- By now your water should be boiling, so stir in the pasta. Stir every once in a while.
- As the pasta cooks, make the cheese sauce. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, and whisk in the flour. Whisk constantly over medium low heat for 1 minute, until the flour breaks up into small pieces. Then whisk in the milk. Increase the heat to medium, stir frequently. Bring the milk mixture to a slow boil and whisk constantly for 1 minute while the mixture thickens. Then add the cheese, mustard, and sriracha. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook the pasta until it is very al dente - you are going to cook the pasta for another couple minutes in the sauce, so undercook it a little. Drain the pasta, and pour it into the sauce. Add the beef and the tomatoes. Stir to combine and then let simmer for 1 minute. Tear up the spinach and stir it in, let the macaroni and cheese cook for another minute.
- The last step is to chop up the bacon, and to sprinkle it over the top of the macaroni and cheese. Serve right away!
Notes
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Joanne says