Baked Spaghetti

We had this recipe the other night in our small groups. Shelley Hudspeth was kind enough to share the recipe with me to put on my blog. I can tell you that this is DELICIOUS. Thanks, Shelley.

28 oz. can diced tomatoes with liquid
4 oz. mushrooms (drained)
2 1/4 oz. black olives (drained)
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 lb. ground beef
1 med. onion
1 med. green pepper
1 can mushroom soup
1/4 cup water
16 oz. spaghetti
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
DO NOT ADD SALT.
Brown beef, onion and green pepper. Add tomatoes, olives, mushrooms and oregano. Simmer uncovered 10 min. Spray 9 x 13 pan . Boil spaghetti, just enough to bend, still crunchy.
Layer 1/2 spaghetti on bottom of pan.
1/2 sauce
1/2 cheese
Repeat
1/4 cup water with mushroom soup and spread over top. Sprinkle with parm cheese.
Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes.

White Texas Sheetcake

1 cup margarine
1 cup water
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp. almond extract
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. soda

In a large saucepan, bring margarine and water to a boil . Remove from heat; Pour into mixing bowl in which you have added the flour and sugar. Mix well. Add eggs, sour cream, extract, salt, and soda and mix until smooth. Pour into a greased and floured 15x10x1 inch jelly roll baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until brown.

Frosting:
1/2 cup margarine
1/4 cup milk
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 cup chopped walnuts

Combine margarine and milk in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat; add sugar and extract. Mix well. Stir in nuts and spread over warm cake. Serves 16 to 20.

Melanzane o zucchine grigliate

Grilled eggplants or zucchini

When we were in Italy recently visiting our daughter and her family, we were invited to eat in the home of Becky's friend, Marina. She is a wonderful Italian lady and is an excellent cook. This is one of the dishes she served and she has given me permission to use her recipe.

1. Slice the vegetables 1 cm thick. For the eggplants, soak them in salt for 1 night.
2. Grill them in a heavy iron grill on the hob. ( I am not sure what the hob is. I will just use the skillet on my stove.)
3. Put in a dish sprinkling each layer with salt, olive oil, vinegar and, if liked, mashed garlic and basil leaf or parsley. It is possible to make 1 or 2 days in advance. They keep well in the fridge covered with film.
Marina fixed both zucchini and eggplant for us. They were equally delicious. I had never eaten eggplant that I liked until I ate hers. It was fantastic!! Thanks, Marina.

Pumpkin Muffins

I received this e-mail recipe this afternoon from my daughter in Italy. Thought it was a good one.

The e-mail read: Mom, I made up this recipe the other day because I had a can of pumpkin that I didn't know what to do with. The family LOVED them. I thought you might want to post it on your blog and try them out yourself.

Pumpkin Muffins
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 cups flour
1 tsp. soda
2 Tbsp. buttermilk
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
sprinkle of salt
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Pasta Fagioli

I don't want Mark to take my blog off so guess I better get something posted. This recipe came from Becky. I haven't made it yet, but she says it is delicious.

3 tsp. oil
2 lbs. ground beef
12 oz. onion, chopped
14 oz. carrots, slivered
14 oz. celery, diced
48 oz. tomatoes, canned, diced
2 cups cooked red kidney beans
2 cups white kidney beans
88 oz. beef stock
3 tsp. oregano
2 1/2 tsp. pepper
5 tsp. fresh chopped parsley
1 1/2 tsp. Tabasco sauce
48 oz. spaghetti sauce
8 oz. dry pasta, shell macaroni or other pasta

Saute beef in oil in large 10 qt. pot until beef starts to brown. Add onions, carrots, celery and tomatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes. Drain and rinse beans and add to the pot. Also add beef stock, oregano, pepper, Tabasco, spaghetti sauce, and noodles. Add chopped parsley. Simmer until celery and carrots are tender, about 45 minutes. Makes 9 qts. of soup. Just cut the recipe in 1/2 for smaller family needs.

Cheddar Chicken and Potatoes

4 slices bacon
4 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 cups (1 lb.) frozen diced potatoes with peppers and onions, thawed
4 oz. ( 1 cup) 2% milk shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Cook bacon in large nonstick skillet on medium heat 5 min. or until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet to paper towel; discard drippings in skillet.

Add chicken to skillet; cook 5 min. on each side or until done (165 degrees). Remove chicken from skillet; cover to keep warm. Crumble bacon. Add to skillet with potatoes; cook and stir 5 min. or until heated through.

Place chicken over potatoes; top with cheese. Cover; cook 2 min. or until cheese is melted.

Meatballs--Two Ways

2 lbs. ground beef
1 pkg. (6oz.) Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1 1/4 cups water
2 eggs
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line 2 jelly roll pans with foil; spray with cooking spray. Mix ingredients until blended; shape into 32 balls, using 1/4 cup for each.
Place 16 meatballs in each prepared pan. Bake 16 to 18 minutes or until done (160 degrees).
Combine half the meatballs with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce or Creamy Brown Gravy. Cool remaining meatballs; freeze for later use.

1. Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce:
Mix 1 jar (14oz.) spaghetti sauce, 2 oz. cubed cream cheese and 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil in large skillet; cook on medium-low heat 3 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Add 16 hot meatballs; stir to evenly coat. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese before serving. Makes 4 servings, 4 meatballs and 1/3 cup sauce each.

2. Creamy Brown Gravy:
Mix 1 jar (12oz.) beef gravy, 1/2 cup sour cream and 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley in large skillet; cook on medium-low heat 3 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Add 16 hot meatballs; stir to evenly coat. Makes 4 servings, 4 meatballs and 1/3 cup sauce each.