slightly cheesy mac & meat

nowadays i often cook dishes that will be easy to take to work for lunch/dinner, since our canteen will not be for another 2 yrs...

last week i decided to tune old time (finnish) favourite macaroni and meat. here's what went in:

5 dl / 2 cups whole wheat elbow macaroni, boiled to very al dente, rinsed
400 gr / 14 oz (lean) minced beef, browned
1 big onion, minced and sauteed
150 gr / 5 oz grated cheese (best to grate your own)
2 eggs
7,5 dl / 3 cups liquid (combination of cooking cream and any stock you might
have)
crushed black pepper, to taste
serves 4 to 6


first mix the macaroni, browned mince and sauteed onion







then add the grated cheese and mix well. i used this mix but it's best to grate your favourite, these bags aren't very economical...







then mix the wet ingredients and black pepper. i had some 10% cooking cream so i used that, any leaner or fatter will work, as will any stock you might have. i was tempted to add some curry powder but decided to keep it "traditional" with just black pepper. if you use salt, now would be the time to add some







then mix the wet with the dry and you'll have something similar to this...it should be quite wet as the macaroni will suck up most of the moisture while in the oven. that is why you shouldn't cook the macaroni too soft in the first place. second, if you cook whole wheat pasta into can-be-eaten-by-babies-and-people-with-no-teeth mush, you've lost the nutrients that make whole wheat better, and that is not a good thing







grease a 20x26cm / 8x10inch baking dish, place mixture on it and cook in 200C / 400F oven for 30 mins, or until bubbly and slightly brown on top







i had mine with ketchup, but pickled beets or cukes would have been great as well. or green salad, green salad goes with everything...