Sweet Potato Cheeseburger Casserole

Sweet Potato Cheeseburger Casserole - made December 30, 2017 from Paleo Hacks

By now, you might have realized the past few recipes I’ve been posting all have sweet potatoes in them. This is no exception. You can safely take that as a sign that I bought a bag of sweet potatoes from Costco. Even so, I had to give half the bag to my parents as there was no way I could consume them all in time, even with making different recipes and putting most of them in the freezer for later consumption.

This was another fairly easy recipe to put together, made even easier by not having to slice and dice the meat since it’s just ground beef you have to break up while you’re browning it. Also fairly healthy since it’s tomato-based rather than cream-based. My only issue, which wasn’t really an issue, is, despite the name, there is no actual cheese in this cheeseburger casserole. But, ironically, it did taste like what I imagined a cheeseburger casserole should taste like. The spices (Penzey’s, of course) were just right and gave it a good flavor. I still have spiralizing issues but that didn’t detract from the taste.

You’ll notice I left out a few ingredients than what the recipe decreed. Yeah, if I don’t eat it, I don’t add it to my cooking. If you want to make it cheesy, simply top with cheddar cheese at the end and let it melt over the dish.

3 medium sweet potatoes, spiralized

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped (I left it out)
1 celery stalk, chopped (I left it out)
1 pound grass-fed ground beef
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 cup crushed tomatoes (I left it out)
chopped tomatoes and green onion for garnish
salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add onion, carrot and celery. Cook for 3 minutes until onion is translucent and veggies are softened.
2. Increase heat to high and add ground beef. Cook for 5 minutes, breaking meat up as it cooks, until beef is browned and no longer pink. Add oregano, garlic powder, smoked paprika and chili powder. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Stir in the chicken stock and crushed tomatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low and bring to a simmer; add spiralized sweet potatoes and cook for another 10 minutes until sweet potatoes are slightly softened and sauce is reduced. Remove from heat and top with chopped tomatoes and green onions. Serve warm.