Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Recipe Wednesday - Beanie Weanie Mac-n-Cheese

This is in no way a healthy "recipe" but it is actually purdy tasty and fairly quick to whip up. Some of you may think I've gone round the bend with something like this, while others (mainly those in my family) will already have this recipe, or their own similar version.

In a medium sauce pan, make up a box of macaroni and cheese according to box instructions.
In the meantime, cut up some onion, if you like, and saute it in a pan with a smidge of oil. Cut up a few hot dogs (we use turkey dogs and count one per kid, two per adult), add to the pan to cook. Once they're cooked to your liking, add in two cans of pork-n-beans. Add in some brown sugar and barbeque sauce (we like KC Masterpiece Original) to taste and maybe a bit of salt and pepper. This is the point where my younger brother, Jeff, adds in a lot more - garlic powder, onion powder, liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce, etc. Let the beans and weenies simmer and thicken up a bit. Once the mac n cheese and beans are all done, you may either eat them separately, or, like we do often times around our house, mix it all together. Don't forget to add in a fruit or veg to complete the meal!
For a variation on this, my brothers have made a casserole of sorts. I can't remember exactly, but as I recall: Omit the hot dogs and mac n chs. Brown some meat (they use beef, we would use ground turkey), and mix it in with the "baked" beans. Put this mixture into a 9x13 pan, spread cheddar cheese over top, then add a layer of tater tots over that. (I could be wrong - it could be mixture, then tots, then cheese - I guess just experiment if you want.) Bake at 350 until everything is nice and bubbly. Let cool, then dig in.

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