North Adams Transcript
Between a busy week at the paper -- made even more hectic by being out sick one day and still dragging -- here it is Friday morning and I'm just now writing this column.
(Deadline? What deadline? I have a deadline?)
Knowing that I had to produce a column, I grabbed my recipe box on the way out the door this morning. I've been sitting at my desk for a half-hour, flipping through the recipes for some great anecdote to share. Alas, lots of great recipes, but not so many anecdotes.
So, this week is going to be a mish-mash of recipes that I love, but that have short or no stories attached to them.
Two of our closest friends, Sue Downey, and her husband, Mike, hosted SteepleCats players for many years. One of the meals she served them -- which was always a huge hit -- was her Spaghetti Pie. I have to admit, I like it even better than lasagna! I might have to make one this weekend ...
Spaghetti Pie
Serves 6
6 ounces spaghetti
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 well-beaten eggs
1 cup cottage cheese (8 ounces)
1 pound ground beef or bulk pork sausage
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1 8-ounce can (1 cup) tomatoes, cut up
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Cook the spaghetti according to package directions; drain (should have about 3 cups spaghetti). Stir butter or margarine into hot spaghetti. Stir in Parmesan cheese and eggs. Form spaghetti mixture into a "crust" in a buttered 10-inch pie plate. Spread cottage cheese over the bottom of spaghetti crust.
In a skillet, cook the ground beef or pork sausage, onion and green pepper until the vegetables are tender and the meat is browned. Drain off excess fat. Stir in undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, oregano and garlic salt; heat through.
Turn the meat mixture into the spaghetti crust. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese on top. Bake 5 minutes longer or until the cheese melts.
***
Another of my favorite recipes is one Sue Cellana, a fellow youth sports mom, once brought to a party or picnic at the Greylock Community Club pavilion. I couldn't believe how good this salad is. My only regret is that the recipe makes 25 servings and my math skills aren't good enough to divide it more than in half, which still yields 12-plus servings!
Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad
1 head Romaine lettuce, cut into small pieces
1 head cauliflower, broken into small florets
1 red onion, sliced or diced
1 head broccoli, broken into small florets
2 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1 pound bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
Layer vegetables in a large pan or bowl in the above order. Seal top with the mayonnaise and sprinkle sugar, and then Parmesan cheese over top. Cover with crumbled bacon.
Seal with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Toss before serving.
***
So, now that I've given you a main dish and a salad, it seems only right to share one of my favorite pie recipes. This comes from a very sweet woman (no pun intended!), the late Betty Marony, who worked with me in the advertising department at the Transcript many years ago. The beauty of this recipe? It makes not one, but two pies .... and, it's a breeze to make!
Hawaiian Delight
2 graham cracker crusts
20-ounce can crushed pineapple with juice
8-ounce container Cool Whip
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 large can (14 ounces) Eagle Condensed Milk
Mix together the last four ingredients and put into pie crusts. Sprinkle nuts on top. Refrigerate until set.
Margaret Button is the city editor of the North Adams Transcript. Send recipes for inclusion in future columns to the North Adams Transcript, 85 Main St., Suite 2, North Adams, Mass. 01247 or email them to mbutton@thetranscript.com.
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