When I was a kid, my mom cooked a lot in an electric skillet in the summer. It was a great way to make dinner without heating up the entire house. And it’s all cooked in one pan.
Since we’ve been living without a stove/kitchen for almost 7 months (the end is in sight), I decided to revisit one of my favorite childhood meals.
Chili Mac (serves 6-8)
- 1 lb of your favorite ground meat (beef, turkey, chicken, pork, or ground meat-free crumbles to make it vegetarian)
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves diced garlic
- 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 envelope of Chili seasoning
- 14 ounces water
- 2 cups protein pasta (I like Brami)
- 1-3 cups of sharp cheddar cheese
Directions
- In an Electric Skillet, cook and crumble the ground meat over medium heat.
- Add chopped onion and cook until translucent, add garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Add remaining ingredients, turn the electric skillet down to low, and cover.
- Allow mixture to cook on low for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add extra water 1/4 cup at a time as needed. Pasta will absorb some of the liquid as it cooks.
- Once pasta is Al Dente, top with cheese to your liking and serve.
Perfect with cornbread and a green salad.
Chili Mac is better the next day- perfect for meal prep!
The countertops were installed today- the appliances will be reinstalled tomorrow (fingers crossed).
It’s the first week after my surgery and we have been having all sorts of adventures! We went to Lego Building Club at the La Mesa Library, the kids swam several times at our community pool (I sat on the pool deck and took pics), we hung out with friends, and I took a lot of naps.

One of the kid’s favorite summer activities is to hit up the local theater for a showing of one of their favorite movies.
Just in time for summer break, when your kids are so hungry all the time. Grocery Outlet is hooking us up with a $5 of $25+ purchase!