From a long-time reader up in Georgia, we have a recipe for Baked Spaghetti from Amanda Thomas-Henke. She used her mama’s sauce recipe and her own cheese filling recipe to make her delicious baked spaghetti.
Michele Boudalis shares her wonderful recipe for Pasta e Fagioli. I used to go to Olive Garden just for their Pasta e Fagioli, but now I can make my own!
Black-Eyed Peas from Paula Deen is traditional cooking from a real star of the kitchen!
Buffalo Chicken Dip from Amanda Thomas-Henke is a favorite at any gathering, summer or winter.
Often people make hashbrowns and end up with less-than-loveable results because they forgot the one key step in making Hashbrowns– soaking the shredded potatoes in water before cooking! Let’s take a look at how to make them. This instruction for wonderful hashbrowns comes from The Salty Marshmallow.
Have you ever had Jerusalem Artichoke Pickles? We have the recipe from Charleston Receipts for this delicacy. They are wonderful.
This tuber is no relation to the green vegetable we call artichokes. It also has nothing to do with Jerusalem. They are a knobby fat root that needs scrubbing prior to pickling. They grow so easily that they often take over a garden spot if not kept in check.
Jerusalem artichokes, also called sunroot, sunchoke, or earth apple,is a species of sunflower and cultivated across the temperate zone for its tuber, which is used as a root vegetable. It was first extensively cultivated by Native Americans long before the arrival of Europeans which obscures the native range of the species.
AMANDA’S
“MAMA’S SAUCE, MY CHEESE FILLING” BAKED SPAGHETTI
Submitted by Reader of
The Apopka Chief Newspaper
Sauce:
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 cup red wine
1 regular onion diced
Celery
Mushrooms
Salt
Pepper
Fresh rosemary
“Good sized tablespoon” Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon minced garlic
“Sprinkle / not a lot” Red pepper flakes
2 lbs ground beef
Cheese Filling:
1 cup ricotta
1 cup cottage cheese (or 2 cups cottage cheese and leave out the ricotta)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Salt
Pepper
Basil or oregano (maybe 1-1.5
teaspoon) *I used basil but I
prefer oregano
Cayenne (a few shakes)
1 egg
1/2 or 1 bag shredded
mozzarella (8oz)
To make the baked spaghetti: Mix cooked pasta and sauce together. Spread half the mixture in a baking dish. Spoon the cheese mix over the top and spread. Layer on the other half of the spaghetti mix. Sprinkle with more mozzarella (I used an 8 oz bag). Bake at 350 for 25-30 mins.
MICHELE BOUDALIS’
PASTA E FAGIOLI
Submitted by
Reader of
The Apopka Chief Newspaper
2 lbs. ground beef
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-1/2 cups chopped onion
2 cups chopped carrots
2 cups diced celery
28 oz. canned diced tomatoes
2 cups canned red kidney beans
2 cups canned white kidney beans (or any other white bean)
96 oz. beef broth (3 boxes)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons pepper
1-1/2 teaspoons Tabasco or
hot sauce
48 oz. marinara sauce
8 oz. Ditalini pasta (or shell pasta)
1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons parsley
1) Sauté the beef in oil in 10 qt or larger pot until the beef starts to brown. 2) Add the onions, carrots, celery and tomatoes. Simmer for about 10 minutes. 3) Drain and rinse the beans and add to the pot along with the beef broth, oregano, pepper, Tabasco sauce, marinara and pasta. 4) Add the chopped parsley. 5) Simmer until the celery and carrots are tender. 6) Takes about an hour.
PAULA DEEN’S
BLACK EYED PEAS
Ingredients:
4 slices bacon
1 medium onion
1 (16) oz package dried black-eyed peas, washed
1 (12 oz) can diced tomatoes and green chilies
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
6 cups water
1/3 lb hog jowl, thinly sliced
3 teaspoons Paula Deen’s House Seasoning
3 tablespoons butter
Preparation:
1) In a large saucepan, add bacon, cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon, crumble, and set aside to use as a topping for the peas. 2) Add onion and sauté in the bacon drippings until tender. Add the peas, diced tomatoes and green chilies, salt, chili powder, pepper and water. Cover and cook over medium heat for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until the peas are tender. Add additional water, if necessary. Serve garnished with crumbled bacon.
AMANDA THOMAS-HENKE’S
BUFFALO CHICKEN DIP
Submitted by Reader of
The Apopka Chief Newspaper
1 rotisserie chicken
1 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/4-1/2 cup minced sautéed onion
1 cup Frank’s Red Hot
(original or whatever you like)
16 oz cream cheese or neufchatel
1 cup Blue Cheese dressing (Marzetti Ultimate Blue Cheese is the best – Litehouse is another
really good brand
1-1/2 cups shredded sharp
cheddar cheese (fresh is best,
not pre-shredded, but you do you)
Pick chicken and shred. I generally stick with the white meat and make stock with the rest, but feel free to use the whole thing. You’ll end up with a lot of chicken in this dip either way. Heat chicken, pepper, garlic, onion and hot sauce in a pot over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm.
Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low until hot and bubbly.
You can also bake at 350 for 20 minutes or till gold and bubbly.
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE
HASH BROWNS RECIPE
From The Salty Marshmallow
1.) Shred potatoes (either peeled or unpeeled) with a cheese grater and place shredded potatoes into a bowl of cold water.
2.) Stir potato shreds around in the water to loosen the starch off the potato and drain off the starchy water. Refill the bowl with more cold water and repeat stirring and draining the potatoes.
3.) Drain as much water off of the potatoes as you can, drying them with paper towels or a clean dish towel if possible. You can even squeeze them between several layers of cheesecloth to remove as much water as possible.
4.) Heat 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
5.) Transfer dried potatoes into the hot pan and spread into an even layer. Season with salt and pepper and cook without disturbing for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom.
6.) Use a spatula to flip the potatoes in several sections to cook the other side. Cook for another 3-4 minutes or until golden brown.
7.) Remove from heat and serve.
PLAIN WHOLE (JERUSALEM)
ARTICHOKE PICKLES
Recipe from Charleston Receipts
1 peck* Jerusalem artichokes
1 gallon vinegar
1 pound white sugar
1 cup salt
String of hot peppers or
bell peppers
1 ounce whole black peppercorns
Wash and clean artichokes. Soak overnight in salt water. Dry with a cloth. Fill jars, adding a hot pepper or a ring of bell pepper.
Boil other ingredients for 5 minutes, then cover the artichokes with this mixture and seal while hot. Yield: 8 quarts.
NOTE: *1 peck = 2 gallons. 4 pecks = 1 bushel
