He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. Revelation 2:7

if you know my husband you know how much that sweet man loves a hamburger! I remember when we were dating asking him what his favorite food was and he said he was convinced he could eat a burger every day for the rest of his life for every single meal…I was shocked at first, but then he explained you can have a breakfast burger with a fried egg and bacon on top then proceeded to list every burger he could think of! While i love his zeal for burgers i wanted to create a marriage of his favorite food and mine and this caused the creation of the cheeseburger casserole!

i remember as a kiddo eating what my dad called goulash which was just another form of hamburger helper so the creation of this casserole was also really nostalgic for me. It does take some time as you know we have to make a delicious creamy sauce and wait for the casserole to bake, but i promise it’s worth it! It’s a healthier version of hamburger helper that i hope your family enjoys as much as mine does!

alternatives

If you are a vegetarian or vegan don’t hesitate to use your normal meat alternatives! If you are less scared of dairy than my family you can also use normal cheese or cream cheese. I like using goat cheese in place of cream cheese too for a tangier flavor! when buying marinara i always say don’t buy cheap! I love Rao’s marinara, especially because there’s so few ingredients!

steps

you know i’ll always be honest…..browning ground beef is one of my least favorite parts of cooking. i know you’ll laugh because it’s one of the easiest parts! we’ll start there and ground the beef! Make sure to add nature’s seasoning to taste!

Next you’ll start the sauce! the best part! start by melting butter then adding garlic until fragrant. I love the smell of cooking garlic and don’t mind one bit it smelling up my home! next add in nature’s seasoning and flour and allow to cook to start your roux. slowly add almond milk or milk of your choice whisking constantly to make sure there are no lumps! add in dairy free cream cheese until melted then pour in marinara.

next you’ll add the slightly undercooked pasta, sauce, half of ground beef to the dish. then put other half of beef on top of pasta combination along with panko bread crumb topping and dairy free cheddar cheese.

throw that bad boy in the oven and bake 25-30 min until bread crumbs are browned and please enjoy!

Lastly, if you make the cheeseburger casserole, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear about everyone’s adventure and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes/adventures you all have made is my favorite thing to do and keeps me motivated to continue to provide you guys with amazing recipes!