Chili Mac

If you haven’t figured this out yet, I love meals that you can make ahead. This chili mac is a perfect meal for making ahead. You can put this together in the morning and bake it right before dinner or you can freeze it and save it for another busy day. It makes a large batch, so I made half for dinner the day I made it and froze the other half for another day. If you do refrigerate this before baking it, you’ll want to increase the baking time by about 10 to 15 minutes.

But how does it taste? It’s delicious! The chili is nice and spicy, but the cheese and the macaroni help to keep it from being too spicy. I didn’t add any beans to mine, because Alex doesn’t like beans (crazy kid!), but feel free to add a couple cans of your favorite beans (drained) to the mix. I’m sure it would be delicious.

Chili Mac

2 lbs ground beef (I used 90% lean)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 jalapeno, ribs and seeds removed, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp cumin
2 to 3 tbsp chili powder (depending on how spicy you like your chili)
salt and pepper
1 lb box elbow macaroni
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
Chopped fresh tomatoes and cilantro for garnish

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.

Brown ground beef in a large skillet over medium high heat, season with salt and pepper.

Once beef is broken up and starting to brown, add onion, garlic, jalapeno and bay leaf to the skillet. Season with a little more salt and pepper. Saute until beef is no longer pink and onions are soft and translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium and add crushed tomatoes, cilantro, oregano, cayenne, cumin and chili powder. Season with more salt and pepper, if needed. Stir to combine and bring to a bubble.

Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes to let flavors develop.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Once water has come to a boil, cook macaroni for 6 to 8 minutes, until al dente. Drain macaroni and put in a large mixing bowl.

Add chili mixture and 1 cup of cheese to the macaroni and gently stir to combine.

Spoon chili mac into a 9×13 baking dish and top with remaining 1 cup of cheese. Alternately, spoon half into an 8×8 baking dish and top with 1/2 cup cheese. Spoon the remaining chili mac into a freezer bag and freeze for later.