Very finely chopping onion, mushrooms and carrots in the food processor is not only fast—it makes the vegetables hard to detect for picky eaters. They also form the base for the sauce of this ground beef skillet supper. Make it a meal: Serve with a green salad.

Makes 6 servings, about 1 1/3 cups each

ACTIVE TIME: 40 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 40 minutes

EASE OF PREPARATION: Easy

3 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
2 medium carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
10 ounces white mushrooms, large ones cut in half
1 large onion, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound 90%-lean ground beef
2 teaspoons dried thyme
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cups water
1 14-ounce can reduced-sodium beef broth, divided
8 ounces whole-wheat elbow noodles (2 cups)
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or chives for garnish

1. Fit a food processor with the steel blade attachment. With the motor running, drop garlic through the feed tube and process until minced, then add carrots and mushrooms and process until finely chopped. Turn it off, add onion, and pulse until roughly chopped.
2. Cook beef in a large straight-sided skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the chopped vegetables, thyme, salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables start to soften and the mushrooms release their juices, 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Stir in water, 1 1/2 cups broth, noodles and Worcestershire sauce; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is tender, 8 to 10 minutes.
4. Whisk flour with the remaining 1/4 cup broth in a small bowl until smooth; stir into the hamburger mixture. Stir in the sour cream. Simmer, stirring often, until the sauce is thickened, about 2 minutes. Serve sprinkled with parsley (or chives), if desired.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving: 326 calories; 10 g fat (4 g sat, 3 g mono); 54 mg cholesterol; 38 g carbohydrate; 23 g protein; 4 g fiber; 431 mg sodium; 644 mg potassium. Nutrition bonus: Vitamin A (70% daily value), Zinc (33% dv), Iron (20% dv), Potassium (18% dv).
2 1/2 Carbohydrate Servings
Exchanges: 2 starch, 1 vegetable, 2 medium-fat meats

Okay, so my husband hates onions and mushrooms...I added extra garlic, a little less onion and ground everything to a pulp. He LOVED it and wants it to be a family favorite from now on!

Andrea, Kalamazoo, MI

I tried this because it looked good and I was intrigued that it could be a healthy alternative to "Hamburger Helper" (which I never use anyway). It was tasty, but not remarkable; but I recommend it because of its versatility. The seasonings and vegetables used can be varied according to what you have on hand, to make it like a stroganoff or an Italian or Greek pasta dish. In fact, I didn't have mushrooms, but I used yellow bell pepper and an end of a large zucchini. If you have kids and/or lack time, I think this is a great method for making a quick lunch or supper.

Anonymous, Great Falls, MT

OK, I admit I didn't tell my kids there were carrots and mushrooms in the sauce...but they really liked it (my 5-year-old loved it!) and my husband liked it so much he went back for a large second helping. A great and tasty way to sneak veggies in.

Rajani, Concord, MA

This recipe was ok, but finely chopping the vegetables gave it a somewhat unpleasant texture. It would be well worth the extra few minutes to chop the vegetables a bit coarser rather than "finely chopping" them in the food processor. I regularly make my own tomato-based versions which are just as easy and, I think, much better.

Anonymous, Waterloo, ON

We loved it!

Anonymous, Sacramento, CA

We liked it, although at first we felt something was missing. Then we added just a sprinkle of pecorino romano cheese and that was the extra touch it needed. This is a nice comfort food dish.

Anonymous, Raleigh, NC

This is absolutely delicious!! Like other reviewers, I too have made tomato-based versions, but I thought this was a little better. I've made it twice, chopped the veggies by hand (day before so took no time to prepare next night) and the chunkier texture was perfect - and my 16-month old enjoys the small veggie chunks. Hand chopping took less time since you have to pre-chop anyway - and no extra gadget to clean up.

Anonymous, Acton, MA

Loved this recipe! Didn't have dried thyme so used fresh. Garnished with a dollop of sour cream, a sprig of thyme and a sprinkling or pecorino romano. Agree that a sprinkling of pecorino romano added the perfect touch!

Anonymous, Salem, MA

This is delicious!! I too have made tomato-based versions, and I like this one better. I've made this twice and chopped the veggies by hand to make bigger chunks, which gives a perfect texture that my 16-month old loves. Hand-chopping seemed faster than the processor, since you have to pre-chop anyway. And no extra equipment to clean up. Also chopped veggies the day before so cooking next night went very quickly.

Anonymous, Acton, MA

This was wonderful comfort food, and a very versatile dish as well. Definitely in the rotation for weeknight meals.

Anonymous, Columbus, OH

This was one of the worse recipes I have ever made. I made it to take to work and none of my coworkers would eat it after the initial taste. I thought I followed the recipe precisely but thought there was too much thyme and not a good taste. My husband wouldn't eat it either and I put it down the garbage disposal. I usually like your recipes and have made many of them but this was definitely bad!

Anonymous, Gilbert, AZ

This recipe has been a hit with every audience I've made it for... from mushroom-haters & non-veggie-eaters to nutritionists!

Anonymous, San Diego, CA

If it was possible to give this a negative rating I would. I followed the recipe exactly. It was sooooo bland. I do agree with one of the earlier reviewers, it is a versatile recipe and one that can be doctored up. I have made numerous recipes from site and this is the first that has been disappointing. I don't believe that I'll make this one again.

Jeff, Denver, CO

My family loved it. I thought it was great. It made great leftovers for lunches, too. It felt good knowing all those veggies were tucked away inside. A keeper!

Anonymous

My family loved this! The catchy name was the initial draw for my 8 year old; the taste won him over. I used lean ground turkey without any compromise of taste. The food processor makes this recipe an easy, weeknight, nutrition-packed meal!

Anonymous, VA

I just used whatever vegetables I had on hand and finely chopped by hand rather than use the food processor. It was a good way to sneak in the veggies my kids wouldn't normally eat. It was an easy meal and everyone liked it, except for my daughter who never enjoys the flavor of thyme, so for her I might try a different herb next time (oregano, maybe?).

Lori, Simsbury, CT

A big hit! I followed the recipe, with the exception of adding 1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese near the end of cooking. My BF raved over this, and I really enjoyed it too. It will certainly become a part of our regular meal rotation, and I'm going to share the recipe with the rest of my family.

Anonymous, Austin, TX

When I made this, I quartered the mushrooms, and chopped the carrots into about 1/2 inch pieces. My kids aren't finicky about vegetables, and they loved this. The pasta was not mushy at all. My 15 year old licked his bowl and said it as a keeper, and so did DH. And, this recipe is a core recipe if you are doing that program on weight watchers! Definitely going into my recipe collection.

Jan, OK

Ok... I wanted to like it, it sounded good on paper, but tasted rather bland and mushy. I would not recommend adding this recipe to your collection, unless you have finicky kids at home.

Anonymous, San Francisco, CA

Oh my. There is waaaaaaay too much thyme in this. My husband (who's not a picky eater) took a couple of bites of this and refused to eat it... we are throwing out the leftovers (and we are cheap, so that says a lot!). The concept is good, just the seasonings need to be tweaked. I think I will make this again but I will reduce the thyme down to 1/2 tsp and add other spices (maybe some italian seasoning or basil or even some cajun seasoning).

Chris, San Diego, CA

Don't have a food processor, so my veggies were diced by hand. Used ground turkey and chicken broth. Had very good flavor and kept well for lunch the next day. Made a fairly large amount, too, so it added up to a cheap meal!

Anonymous, Jacksonville, FL

This even works well as a vegetarian version with vegetable broth & veggie ground "meat". My kids loved it!

Tina, San Francisco, CA

I suppose I ought to preface this by saying I made a tomato version, but this was just ok. I had high hopes (we like the packaged "hamburger buddy"), and wished other reviewers were just being picky, but it's not that great. We'll definitely eat it, but I don't think I'll be making it again, or at least not very regularly.

Laura, OK

My husband and I are trying to eat heathier and I came across this one-pot meal (great for a work night). We were very surprised on how good this tasted. I followed another's suggestion and chopped the vegetables instead of the vegetables being put in the food processor. My husband is a picky eater and he said he would eat this again! Thank you.

Shelley, Chicago, IL

My children would not eat mushrooms, this is a great recipe that is healthy and tasty, my children ate it all!

Ruth Medina, Medford, MA

I love this recipe. I didn't use thyme in the recipe and I used frozen chopped vegetables (more convenient for me). Besides that, I followed the recipe and added salt to taste. It's my first time eating whole wheat pasta and I like it. This is the third recipe I do from your magazine and instead of buying the mag on newsstands once in a while, I'll subscribe today.

Anonymous, Montreal, QC

This recipe is pretty bland except for the harsh taste of too much thyme. Yuck.

E.Bay mom, Berkeley, CA

I just made this, the pic looks good. But it was just ok. I think it would have tasted better if the veggies were chopped by hand and it was def missing something. I added grated parmesan, just to give it 1 last kick.

laughlaugh, Rockville, MD

Delicious! I would def. not process the vegetables though. I just sliced them and my family loved the dish!

Amanda, Atlanta, GA

Not crazy about this dish. My husband and I both found it to be somewhat bland. Not terrible, but it is not likely that we will make it again.....

Karen, Pittsburgh, PA

I made this for my family tonight and hand chopped the veggies as fine as I could. I was pleased with how it turned out. It did seem like it was missing something- maybe peas, or chili powder. I can't tell if it needed something sweet or hot to kick it up a little. I wouldn't go as far as to say it was bland though. I will certainly make it again. I didn't have reduced sodium beef broth so I used regular and didn't add the 3/4 tsp salt. That may have been why I thought it was missing something- but I didn't want the extra sodium.

Leslie, Los Angeles, CA

Sounded great on paper but was very bland. The addition of hot sauce could not even bring it to life. Very disappointing recipe, I would only recommend this to people that are on bland diets. This would probably be a hit with kids.

Lisa, Columbus, OH

My family loved this recipe... I added about 1/2 cup wine to the recipe and even my kids loved this I made it twice in 1 week... will try the pecorino next time I make this... thanks eating well.

kasd97, Neptune, NJ

I have made this a couple of times and my family likes it a lot as an occassional dish. I cut down on the Worcestshire sauce because it was a bit strong, eliminated the thyme but substituted some other herbs, and added a bit more salt. I do use the food processor as it gives it a saucey feel more like the packaged version. It's not gourmet, but it does the trick for a family meal without all the processed garbage from a box.

Erin, Madison, WI

I made this for my family and we all thought it was great. Very easy and we actually pureed most of the mushrooms, the kids didn't even know what veggies were in it until we told them. We will be making this one again.

Jennifer, New Bern, NC