Hamburger Helper My Way Recipes

Steps:

• Brown the meat in a medium sized skillet.
• Do not add water to it unless there isn't enough fat in the meat.
• If water is needed, add very little.
• Bring the 3 cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan.
• Add the packet of macaroni.
• Boil until the macaroni is done and tender.
• When the meat is done, drain the grease from the skillet and return skillet to the burner.
• Don't remove the meat from the skillet.
• Drain the water from the macaroni and rinse with hot water.
• Add the macaroni to the meat and stir.
• Lower the burner to medium.
• In a shaker bottle or large cup, mix the half and half and the 1/2 cup water.
• Add the packet of sauce mix/powder and shake vigorously or stir in cup very well, until sauce mix/powder is completely dissolved and there are no lumps in it.
• With one hand, slowly add the sauce mixture to the hamburger mixture, while stirring constantly with the other hand.
• Stir constantly so that it doesn't start to stick to the bottom of the skillet.
• Sauce will start to thicken.
• Continue stirring constantly.
• You might need to lower the heat again.
• Once sauce has somewhat thickened, remove from heat and let stand.
• The sauce will completely thicken on its own.

Steps:

• Heat a large (12-inch) sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium-low heat, and add oil and onion; season lightly with salt and pepper. (The hot sauce added in Step 6 will add a lot of flavor, so be careful not to overseason here.) Let cook until the onions turn light beige in color and begin to caramelize, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Add garlic, and cook until fragrant and starting to brown ever so slightly, about 2 minutes.
• Increase heat to medium-high and add bacon and ground beef, using the back of a large spoon to break up the meat into smaller pieces. Continue to cook until the liquid has mostly evaporated and the meat starts to sear and develop a crust on the bottom of the pan, 12 to 15 minutes.
• Remove pan from the heat and carefully drain off most of the fat, leaving a little in the pan to keep the meat moist.
• Return pan to the medium-high heat and add white wine, allowing it to reduce until the mixture is almost dry, about 10 minutes.
• Add the chicken stock, heavy cream, hot sauce, paprika and bay leaf to the pan. Mix until combined and bring to a boil over medium-high.
• Once the mixture is boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente, stirring often, about 9 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to low and stir in both types of cheese, stirring until completely melted and sauce is thickened.
• Remove the pan from heat, stir in chives and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.