Description
A comforting and cheesy pasta dish made in a slow cooker that’s perfect for busy days.
Ingredients
Scale
- 500 g ground beef
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped (about 150 g)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 240 ml beef or chicken broth
- 300 ml evaporated milk
- 120 ml heavy cream
- 225 g cream cheese, room temperature
- 150 g shredded cheddar or mozzarella
- 60 g grated Parmesan
- 340 g short pasta (e.g., penne)
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- Optional: 4 slices crispy bacon, cooked and crumbled; chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and onion; sauté until browned and translucent, about 6–8 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Transfer to the slow cooker.
- Add tomato paste, broth, evaporated milk, heavy cream, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper to the slow cooker. Stir to combine. Cook on Low for 2 hours.
- Cut cream cheese into cubes and stir into the hot sauce until mostly melted, about 5–8 minutes. Add shredded cheese and Parmesan; stir gently until incorporated.
- Stir in dry pasta and extra broth or water if needed; cover and cook on Low for 30–45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Taste and adjust seasoning. Stir in crumbled bacon or parsley if desired. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
For a vegetarian version, substitute ground beef with plant-based options and use vegetable broth.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 150 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 520
- Sugar: 7g
- Sodium: 600mg
- Fat: 28g
- Saturated Fat: 12g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10g
- Trans Fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 45g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 30g
- Cholesterol: 80mg