Recipe Monday - Homemade Hamburger Helper

I'd made a few hamburger helpers when I just couldn't get myself to do anything more, and I noticed I was making it super hard on myself anyway by adding chopped veggies and all other kinds of things to try to make it more healthy. So, this time, I decided to nip it in the bud, and just make my own "helper" too. It came out great! The girls asked for seconds.

1 lb ground beef
1 cup hot water
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups elbow macaroni
1 cup cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic
1 teaspoon salt
 teaspoon sugar

Directions:

1 Brown ground beef in a large skillet. Drain.
2 Add hot water, milk, pasta and all spices.
3 Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 12 minutes or until pasta is tender.
4 In the last few minutes of cook time, add cheese, stir and re-cover.
5 When pasta is tender and cheese is melted, remove heat and uncover.
6 Let stand about 5 minutes. Sauce will thicken as it stands.
7 Top with additional cheese if you like.

I added sauteed onions, summer squash and bell peppers to this and it was delicious. You can throw in any vegetables you like!