Macaroni & Cheese

Growing up my mom made macaroni and cheese, homemade of course, with elbow macaroni.

When we moved into our stepmother’s house after my mom passed, my little sister Ruthie and I made Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

As I grew older and had children of my own, I’d make homemade macaroni and cheese and Kraft Macaroni and Cheese—as kids like that.

When I started to date current husband, we went to his folks on occasion. Maurine (mother-in-law) was ‘famous’ for her macaroni and cheese (and her potato salad). She used what she called “macaroni macaroni” noodles. Long macaroni noodles—like thick spaghetti hollowed. You could drink through the noodle like a straw. I never knew they made such a noodle—and it does make good macaroni and cheese. It’s what I use now… unless I don’t have any on hand and want to make mac and cheese, then I might use any kind of noodle.

My husband’s folks are no longer living, but when the rest of the family gets together, you can bet there’s usually Maurine’s version of mac and cheese.

Cook a package of Macaroni Noodles (I can only find these noodles at Schnucks—here in St. Louis, MO). Butter a casserole dish, add a layer of noodles, sprinkle with salt and pepper, top with hunks of cut up Colby cheese, dot with a little of butter and repeat. Top the noodles with some slices or shredded Colby cheese, dot with butter. Add milk—enough that when you tip the casserole dish you will see the milk starting to appear. Maurine always liked to use more milk, so give it an extra splash if you want. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for about a good hour, or longer, until golden brown and bubbly.

Some folks like the top of this to be crunchy, which I’m not a fan of, however even leaving the lid on makes a crunchy top. But you could take the lid off the last 10 minutes of cooking for any extra crunch.

Ingredients:
Macaroni Noodles
Milk
Colby cheese
butter, salt and pepper

Rating & Type: E/V

Feature Friday—Becky Povich

A big welcome to Becky Povich as my Feature Friday guest. Becky claims she doesn’t cook much, so I told her she could share anything she wanted. Becky sent me her favorite meatloaf recipe that she received from her niece, Renee. Becky says, “It’s the best meatloaf I've ever had!” I’m definitely going to have to give this recipe a shot.

We all know what meatloaf looks like, so Becky shared pictures of her homemade recipe book instead. How cute is that?

Here’s the front cover, the spine and the inside.

And now for the recipe.

If you have trouble reading the recipe card, here it is:

Grandma Berry’s Meat Loaf
2/3 cup bread crumbs
1 ½ pounds ground beef
2 eggs
¼ cup chopped onion
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
½ tsp. sage (didn’t use)

Sauce
3 T. brown sugar
4 T. ketchup
1 tsp. dry mustard

Soak 2/3 cup bread crumbs in a little milk. Add beef and remaining items. Put loaf in pan and cover with sauce.
Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

A while ago, Becky had sent me some pictures of her ice cream cone cupcakes that she made when she was about 10 years old. The photo of the cupcakes aren’t the ones Becky made (they’re from the cookbook) although I’m sure Becky’s were just as cute, if not cuter. If you read my dessert blog, I had written about my ice cream cone cupcakes made from a silicon mold. I think Becky’s would be better because you put the batter in the cone and bake it. No worries about the cones falling over like mine did. As Becky said, “You can eat the entire thing—no mess, no dishes.” And look at that sweet Betty Crocker's Cook Book for Boys and Girls Becky received from her mother. I just love it.

Becky has a fun sense of humor, a generous heart and is working hard on her memoir. I’m glad to have met Becky through St. Louis Writers Guild, and that we’re now friends.

You should check out Becky’s blog as there’s something there for everyone, and she always has a cool quote to go with her blog post.

Thanks Becky! And I look forward to trying your meatloaf!

Scallops

It's Tasty Thursday.

Just so you all don’t think I always cook cheap or make comfort food or easy easy dishes, here’s something I’ll share. I prepared a French dinner for my husband for our anniversary. And since I wrote all about it and took pictures along the way, you can view it here if you’d like.

Otherwise you can just sauté the scallops in a little butter, squeeze a little lemon juice on them and you’re good to go. That’s not how I made them for this French dinner, but how I’ve made them before.

Bon Appetite!

Ingredients:
Scallops

Rating & Type: NE/F