Auntie Kate The Resale Expert

Yummy Saturday night supper; even yummier as Sunday leftovers. Also great with salad and warm bread for a staff get-together/planning dinner.

I made this for dinner just before a “10 MInutes with Kate” live video on our private TGtbT Facebook group… look close and you can see a tomato-colored splash or two on my face!

Source

Too Good to be Threw Smokehouse Spaghetti

This is not so much as a recipe as it is a collection of suggestions to create your own version. Exercise your options. It’s your kitchen, after all.

Saute 8 oz. sliced mushrooms in a bit of olive oil. I added some sliced pepperoni ’cause I had ’em. Some folks add diced green pepper (hence the green in the photo… I don’t. Green pepper has its place just not in this dish.)

Set aside. (The original recipe calls for canned mushrooms. Oh the horror. Please ONLY use if you are snowbound.)

Start the water for cooking 12 oz. Spaghetti.

Crisp up ¼ lb. Bacon (cut in small pieces), then add 1 med. Onion chopped and 1 lb. or so Ground Beef until all the pink is gone.

Add the mushrooms back into the meat mixture, stir in a 24 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce (I used that because I had one from a BOGO sale at the grocery. If you’d rather not use commercial sauce, add this instead: 24 oz tomato sauce seasoned with 1 ½ tsp. Salt, 1/8 tsp. Black pepper, ½ tsp. Oregano and ½ tsp. Garlic salt… or your favorite Italianate spices.)

Simmer all that while the spaghetti cooks… don’t overcook the spaghetti ’cause it’s going in the oven next. Oh, and turn the oven on to 375.

Stir the meat mixture and the spaghetti (yes, of course you drain it first) together.

Using (the recipe suggests a 2.5 qt casserole) a lasagne baking dish, greased with a bit of olive oil, put half the mixture in the dish, top with half of the following:

¼ lb. Shredded provolone cheese (you could use mozzarella instead but a good Provolone gives that smoky flavor. You could also add a touch of Parmesan if it’s in your fridge and feeling left out of the festivities) and ¼ lb. Shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Repeat layers of spaghetti and cheese.

Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 20 – 25 minutes or until the cheese is nicely browned. If you are anything like me, you’ll need that 20-25 minutes to clean the pots and pans, cutting board, stovetop, kitchen cabinets up. And to check your face, outfit, floor for errant tomato-colored splashes.