Cheesy Beef Vegetable Casserole

Makes 6 Servings

4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
6 cups uncooked egg noodles
4 cups mixed vegetables, thawed
1-2 lbs ground beef
3-4 cups shredded cheese
salt
pepper

Directions:

Boil the noodles as directed. Brown the ground beef & season as desired (I use salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder). Spray a 13x9 glass baking dish. Drain the noodles. Melt the butter and slowly whisk in the flour to make a roux. Slowly stir in the milk to make a white cream sauce. Stir in the cheese, leaving a half cup or so our for the topping. Stir until cheese is melted and well combined and season with salt and pepper to taste. (I also like to add 1/4 cup or so of grated parmesan) Mix beef, vegetables, noodles and cheese sauce together in the baking dish then top with remaining shredded cheese. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes until bubbly and cheese is melted.



After reading a forum post about cheese sauce, I couldn't contain my craving for it and came up with this recipe in my head while driving to the mall...yes, I'm crazy like that! I whipped it up in about 20-30 minutes, and it was a huge hit. Everyone loved it and my husband's eyes lit up like it was Christmas! (He is a huge casserole fan.) For weeknights when you are so busy and want a quick, easy and best of all, ONE dish meal, this is your winner!