Homemade Cheeseburger Pasta (Gluten Free)

Homemade Cheeseburger Pasta
(serves 2)

1/4 lbs Corn Pasta, Penne
1/2 lbs Ground beef (or turkey, or Shredded zucchini for veggie)
1 Tablespoon olive oil, light in flavor
1 Tablespoon gluten free flour ( I used masa)
Almond milk
2 Tablespoons Parmesan
3/4 cup shredded cheddar

This recipe has cheddar and Parmesan cheese in it so it is not dairy free, however the white sauce is made with almond milk to reduce the amount of dairy.

To start, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and put some water on to boil for your pasta. Then put your ground meat in a pan on medium low and stir as needed until browned.

Next start your white sauce by putting your oil and flour in a small saucepan. Turn on heat to medium and stir continuously while very slowly adding some almond milk. Start by adding 1/4 cup almond milk and stirring until smooth, then add 1 tablespoon at a time there after until smooth but not watery. Keep in mind the sauce will thicken as it heats so a little thin is OK at first. Once hot add the Parmesan and  1/2 the cheddar and stir until smooth, add some more almond milk to thin out if it becomes too thick after adding cheese.

If your water is boiling add your pasta and boil according to package directions.
Next get an 8 x 8" pan and put your fully cooked meat in it.

When your pasta is done add to pan with meat and stir in cheese sauce

Then top with remaining cheddar cheese

And bake until cheese is melted, top with grated Parmesan and serve. 

Top 10 aquarium questions: 3. What type of filter do I need?

What type of filter do I need?

This depends on the type of system you want to have. Decide whether you want fresh or salt, and then decide whether you want plants or fish only. 

There are three types of filtration to consider: 

Biological, as we discussed in detail earlier is where biological organisms break immediate wastes into less toxic wastes. Identify this component of your filter because you will never want to wash it. If it gets clogged rinse in a cup of tank water, but never wash clean or rinse with tap or you will lose all those beneficial bacteria you waited so patiently to grow during your cycle. This part will usually be plastic balls, or ceramic beads, or rock in a salt system.

Chemical, most commonly carbon, uses a chemical to absorb toxins out of the water. Chemical filtration can also absorb medication out of the water which is why you remove it when treating a tank.

Mechanical, usually a foam pad, physically catches debris out of the water. This you will wash regularly but never need to replace if you buy the aqua clear filters, because their foam pad is tough. Some filters combine the carbon with the pad and don't give you a choice but to replace both, lame. 

For fresh water fish only there are many pre-boxed filters you can use. My personal favorite are Aqua Clear filters because they have all three types of filtration, and the replacement filters are easy to find or make at home. Unlike some other filters where you have to find their brand or it won't fit into the filter. 

For fresh water planted you will want a filter that doesn't disturb the surface of the water. plants need light for photosynthesis, and ripples in the water deflect light. Good filters for this purpose are canister filters, my favorite being the Fluval G series. Which is digital and gives you read outs of temp, flow rate, and many other cool options. 

For salt water in general we have the unique ability to use live rock as biological filtration. You'll need rock and a pump to move water around the tank and through the rock. Many people stopped using carbon in salt tanks back when it leeched phosphates into their tanks, which kills corals, but now you can get reef carbon for a slightly higher price which does not leech phosphates. There are other types of chemical filtration for saltwater tanks, most of which are specific to reefs. These include bio-plastics, like the ones two little fishes makes, Granular ferric oxide or GFOs, and a few random others. These are most commonly used in Reefs so I will discuss them further in the reef section below. 

For salt water fish only, you can run them on live rock alone, however I prefer some sort of mechanical filtration, at least in the beginning to help clarify the water. Any of the filters mentioned thus far will work for this, I personally have used a Fluval and an Aqua Clear on two separate tanks and liked them both. Maintenance for a fish only is similar to a fresh water fish only, the only additional work being monitoring salt content of the water. Which is easy with a hydrometer or refractometer. Also most stores sell pre mixed salt water now, so you don't have to hassle with mixing it at home. If you do decide to mix at home it's a good idea to do this the night before so as not to burn your fish with undissolved salt. 

For saltwater reef, which just means saltwater with plants and or corals of any kind.You will need all the same equipment from fish only plus a protein skimmer. The protein skimmer mimics the wave action of the ocean by producing many small bubbles and catching the protein build up, aka the "skimate", and removing it from the tank. This serves two purposes. One it removes excess nitrogen from the tank which improves water quality, and Two this also improves clarity. Both of these are important for corals. Although fish can tolerate nitrate levels up to 40 ppm with no problems at all, corals need the nitrates to be below 10 ppm and 0 ppm is best. You will also need a phosphate reactor to help keep your phosphates at zero. The reactor is sold empty and you can choose to purchase GFO or bio-plastics. The difference being that GFO targets phosphates specifically, and bio-plastics act as a food source for bacteria that breaks down both nitrates and phosphates. I use the bioplastics but if you ever find yourself with high phosphates and need them down quick GFOs are your best bet.