Why did I call it "Newlywed" Beef and Bean Skillet? Well, two reasons. It has more of a ring to it than "hamburger and beans" does and we ate a LOT of it when we were newlyweds. Why? Two reasons. My farm boy had a very limited range of foods he liked for one thing. After all it was the 70's and long before food was an adventure, cooking was cool and chefs were iconic.
Why else? It was cheap and easy to make! The year we were married a pound of hamburger was under a buck and two cans of pork and beans set me back 39 cents! But I also made $90 a week working 40 hours at the phone company!
Back then we scooped it over a slice of bread with an American cheese single on top and ate it with a whole lot of potato chips! Who cared? We were cute and skinny back then! Love the professional wedding picture?
Forty nine years later, this dish is still in our menu rotation. From time to time we just get a hankering for a plateful of that good old familiar flavor!
As with all marriages and old favorites, recipes evolve with us over the years. You might want to saute some actual onions and peppers and add them. How about some bacon? Or maybe if you like more heat, some chili powder or barbecue sauce.
Speaking of evolving, here we are today! Next year we'll celebrate 50 years and today we mostly go by "GB and Papa", not Steve and Betty. We don't put it on bread anymore. These days we serve it with fruit and veggies but Papa still has to have his chips!! Some things, thankfully, never change!
Tasty, simple main dish using ingredients you probably have on hand.
Brown ground beef, drain excess fat if needed. Add rest of ingredients and simmer 10- 15 minutes.
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It was a staple in our marriage as well!! Also could stretch it to feed hungry kids! Love it with chips too.
I always look forward to your recipes. Some of them are just like mine & always enjoy new ones .
Thanks Betty!
Julie Axmann
I think our generation really knew how to put the heart in the home!! Thanks for taking time to comment! I could kiss you!!
Really sweet post. Still one of my faves, too!!
Oh for a chance at a redo of those sweet years with my cute littles! And both of you turned out to be such good cooks and loving mommas too! ❤
Hi there, just wanted to tell you, I loved this article.
It was funny. Keep on posting!
Thank you!
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