Beef Macaroni and Cheese Surprise

This is a really yummy casserole. The night I made it, one kid fell asleep before dinner and wouldn't get up and my husband worked late. I ate a bit and the baby liked it so I saved it for the next day. I had almost no hope for this dish, though I thought it was very tasty, it was now casserole AND leftovers. The surprise was, for the first time ever, I made a casserole and it ALL got eaten up.

For about 8 servings (I halved it for my family)
Ingredients:
1 LB bag of elbow macaroni
2 TBS vegetable oil
2 C Green pepper chopped
1 TBS Garlic chopped
2 LBS Lean Ground Beef
3 C canned crushed tomatoes
salt and pepper
1 tsp each dried basil, ground cumin, and dried oregano
2-3 C grated cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 350. Cook macaroni to just done - not over done, drain and set aside. Heat oil in skillet, add peppers, onion, and garlic, saute until soft. Add ground beef and cook until brown. Add tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste, and basil, cumin, and oregano. Combine macaroni and beef mixture. Spread into a 9X13 baking dish. Top with cheese and bake for 20-25 until cheese is lightly brown and bubbly.

Oh, and when I made it I didn't have green peppers, cumin, or basil, so I used celery salt, chives, parsley and Season All. Since then I have bought cumin and can't wait to use it, it smells really good!