When the temperature dips, warm your heart with good old mac 'n' cheese. We guarantee that this recipe will be one of the easiest and creamiest you've ever made.
| 1 1/2 | pounds lean ground beef |
| 1 | large onion, chopped (1 cup) |
| 1 | large bell pepper, chopped (1 cup) |
| 2 | large cloves garlic, finely chopped |
| 1 | can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes, undrained |
| 2 | cups hot water |
| 1 | envelope (1 ounce) onion soup mix (from 2-ounce package) |
| 1 | teaspoon Italian seasoning |
| 3 | cups uncooked rotini or fusilli (corkscrew) pasta (9 ounces) |
| 1 1/2 | cups shredded Italian cheese blend or mozzarella cheese (6 ounces) |
| Spray rectangular baking dish, 13x9x2 inches, with cooking spray. |
| Cook beef, onion, bell pepper and garlic in 4-quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until beef is brown; drain. Stir in tomatoes, water, soup mix (dry), Italian seasoning and pasta. Spoon into baking dish. |
| Cover tightly with aluminum foil and refrigerate at least 8 hours but no longer than 24 hours. |
| Heat oven to 375°. Bake covered 45 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and casserole is bubbly. |
This is the basic gist of what we had the other night:
20 oz. of bread flour (all purpose is okay, too) – about 4 cups.
8 oz. of water (or 1 cup.)
4 oz. melted butter with chopped herbs of choice. We had chives. Rosemary or Thyme would work really well.
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon active or instant yeast. (if active, it would be best to sprinkle yeast over the water to let it start to work before mixing it in)
I combined these ingredients all together in the KitchenAid stand mixer with the dough hook (it can be done by hand…it just takes longer).
I mixed them together for about 10 minutes or so until I could successfully achieve a windowpane with the dough. This is where you can pull off a small chunk of the dough you’re kneading and stretch it gently to see if it is somewhat translucent. If you can do this without it tearing, it’s ready.
Once this elasticity has been achieved, the dough can sit out with plastic wrap over it for 1-4 hours to double in size. After it’s gotten bigger, it should be kneaded for a minute or two so that the yeast can redistribute.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Cut a large ‘X’ into the surface of the bread dough so it can bloom!
Bake inside a covered cast iron pan after coating the rounded dough with olive oil and sprinkling with kosher salt. Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on, then remove lid to finish it off for another 15 to 30 minutes.
If you like to use a thermometers, we’re looking for an internal temp. of around 200-210 degrees. (The bread can get brown on the bottom if it’s too close to the heating element; if that happens, just slice it off with a sharp knife.
Enjoy!
Spray a small iron skillet with cooking spray (or coat with olive oil). Place frozen rolls in the skillet, leaving plenty of room for rising. Cover and allow to rise for several hours.
After rising, brush rolls with melted butter.
Sprinkle on chopped rosemary. Brush with additional butter.
Sprinkle with coarse sea salt.
Bake according to roll package directions (usually 400 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes), until rolls are a deep golden brown on top.
Serve skillet on the table.
(Definitely visit Pioneer woman's site for some pics of the process and finished product!)