Cheesy Chili Pasta Bake

Y'all, I have a delicious dish to share today. It's so easy & quick enough to make on a week night. However, you can also do quite a bit of prep ahead of time to make it even quicker - just pop it in the oven and let it cook 30 minutes! I personally am not a huge fan of chili, so I was slightly hesitant about trying this recipe. But, it looked like a recipe my husband would really like & it has a lot of cheese, so, oh heck, why not? :) 

Turns out - it was one of the best pasta dishes I've ever tried! And, it makes so much for just the two of us, I separated it into thirds & froze some of it. We were able to enjoy it for several weeks. :) 

I really like the black beans for the chili part rather than traditional kidney or red beans. It is perfectly good just the way it is, but if you want to add a little more flavor some good toppings are sour cream, green onions, or . . . bacon bits! Yes, bacon bits (real ones - bacon that's been cooked & crumbled) go on everything. And of course, a side of bread never hurt anything. ;)

Chili Pasta Bake

Ingredients: 
1/2 Tblsp. oil
1 whole onion, chopped
1 lb. ground beef
1 dash salt
1 dash black pepper
1/2 pound pasta (I used shells)
15 oz. tomato sauce
14 1/2 oz. diced tomatoes & green chiles
15 oz. black beans
1 1/2 Tblsp. chili powder
2 tsp. cumin
3 dashes Cayenne pepper
1/4 cup water
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Optional toppings: sour cream, green onions, bacon bits 

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Drizzle the oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. Add the onions & saute for about 3 minutes. Add the ground beef and season with salt & pepper. Cook until the beef is no longer pink.

3. While the ground beef is cooking, cook your pasta. Once cooked, drain off the water and set the pasta aside.

4. After the ground beef is cooked, add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes & green chiles, beans, chili powder, cumin, Cayenne, & water. Give it a stir and let it simmer for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, stir in the cooked pasta to combine,

5. Pour the chili pasta mixture into a 9x13 pan. Flatten it out with a spatula & sprinkle with cheese. Place in the oven for 30 minutes or until the edges are bubbling and the cheese has fully melted.

6. Enjoy! :)





--Recipe from tastykitchen.com--