Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Cheesy Chili-Mac or My Chaotic Life Part II

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog. Today's dinner is Cheesy Chili-Mac.



     A few weeks ago I wrote about my chaotic life and how Thursdays tend to have a semblance of normalcy, today I'm going to write about my Mondays and the routine that I have to maintain in order to cook all of these dinners and succeed at my diet. My Mondays start early with a visit to the different venues that I work at to make sure that everything is torn down and put away. After that I go to the office and go over the schedule for the rest of the week. I usually finish around noon and take the rest of the day off to do personal errands.
     Next I run to the store to buy groceries for the week, this usually takes about two hours. After the grocery shopping is done I head home. Next on my schedule is to put the groceries away and clean the kitchen, once that's done I am ready to cook dinner later in the evening. If I have time and energy I will do as much work around the house as possible before Ellen gets home around 4:00. From 4:00 to 5:45 we have together time and get ready for the rest of the evening. At 5:45 we go to our weekly weight loss meeting, we are typically there until 7:00. At this point it is 7:00 pm, we are tired and we are both hungry; this is when I make something quick, easy, and delicious. If you can relate to this you will appreciate today's dinner.

                                      Cheesy Chili-Mac 


Prep time    16 Min.     Cook time    28 Min.     Serves    8

Ingredients

1 spray, cooking oil

2/3 pound uncooked lean ground beef

2 medium uncooked onions, chopped

29 ounces canned stewed tomatoes, mexican-style (undrained)

2-1/2 cups canned tomato juice

4 ounces canned green chili peppers, diced, drained

2 tsp chili powder

1-1/2 servings uncooked macaroni, elbow-size

31 ounces canned pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup low-fat shredded cheddar cheese


Instructions

Coat a large skillet with cooking spray; set over medium-high heat. Cook beef and onion until meat is browned, stirring and breaking up meat as it cooks, about 10 minutes; drain off fat.

Stir in undrained tomatoes and their juice, tomato juice, chili peppers and chili powder; bring mixture to a boil.

Stir in macaroni and beans; return to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until macaroni is tender, about 15 minutes. Spoon chili into bowls and sprinkle with cheese.

This recipe yields about 1 cup of chili and 1 tablespoon cheese per serving.


     This is a great dinner for families, if you have kids they will enjoy this dinner. If you try this recipe check back here, leave a comment, and let me know how it turned out.


   Next week - Crock Pot Chicken, Mushroom, and Brown Rice Casserole or A Few of My Favorite Things.

No comments: