Mama's Dinner in a Dash

Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced or 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 green pepper, chopped, again if you have it
• 2 stalks celery, chopped, you guessed it, if you've got it
• 1 lb ground beef (whatever is on sale! lol) or ground turkey (whatever's on sale! lol)
• 28 ounces stewed tomatoes or diced tomatoes
• 15 ounces kidney beans, probably because they're cheap
• 8 ounces elbow macaroni, raw
• 2 cups water, seems like we always had wine no matter the bank balance or 1 cup red wine mixed with 1 cup water, seems like we always had wine no matter the bank balance
• 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
• salt and pepper, to taste

After payday

• parmesan cheese (optional)
• cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions

1. 1

   Heat skillet then spray well with cooking spray or add a little oil. Toss in chopped onions and let them sweat til they start to turn clear. Add garlic and cook just until it gives off some good aroma.

2. 2

   Add ground beef or turkey and brown well. Drain well. (Later when health was an issue we would brown the meat first, then drain and rinse with water and leave to drain in the strainer in the sink while we cooked the onion and garlic. Then returned the meat to the pan.).

3. 3

   Add everything but cheese leaving the macaroni raw when adding- it cooks in the pan. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until macaroni is tender.Top with cheese if you have it and serve!

4. 4

   Note: To make this stretch even more you can make a batch of biscuits or- gulp- open a can- and put them on top. Pop into the oven and bake accordingly.