Spaghetti Pie

 What to do with leftover spaghetti?  I found a recipe for spaghetti pie and made it my own.  Here's the recipe.  First you need leftover spaghetti.  

a pie plate

about a pound of ground meat

half an onion chopped

1 glove of garlic chopped

3/4 tsp. oregano

salt to taste

pepper to taste

1 can crushed tomatoes

1/4 cup parsley

1/2 cup mozzarella

Spread the leftover spaghetti into the pie plate, going up the sides of the plate.  Cook the ground meat with salt, pepper, onion, garlic, and oregano.  When the meat is cooked add the tomatoes and stir.  Add parsley.  Taste.  Adjust with salt, pepper, as needed.  

Put the meat mixture in the pie plate, over the spaghetti.  Spread it evenly.  Sprinkle mozzarella liberally over the top.

Bake at 350 degree oven until the mozzarella is melted--about 20 minutes.  Enjoy

Scripture Cake

 The other day, I received in the mail, a brochure from St. Joseph's Indian School.  It is full of recipes for Christmas.  This one is interesting, Scripture Cake.  I'm definitely making it for the church bake sale.  The references are silly, in that they mention the ingredient.  That's it.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter-- Judges 5:25
1 1/2 cups sugar-- Jeremiah 6:20
1 teaspoon of each: cinnamon, mace, cloves-- 1 Kings 10:10
1/2 teaspoon salt-- Leviticus 2:13
3 eggs-- Isaiah 10: 14
2 teaspoons baking powder-- Luke 13:21
2 cups flour-- 1 Kings 4:22
1/2 cup water-- Genesis 24: 11
1 Tablespoon honey--Proverbs 24: 13
1 cup raisins -- 1 Samuel 30:12
1 cup figs-- 1 Samuel 30:12
1/2 cup almonds-- Genesis 43: 11

DIRECTIONS

Blend butter, sugar, spices, and salt.  Beat egg yolks and add to butter mixture.  Sift in baking powder and flour, then add the water and honey.  Put fruit and nuts through food chopper and chop well.  Fold into batter.  Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites.  Bake for 1 hour in 375 degree Fahrenheit oven.

Galilean Fish Broil

BIBLICALLY BROILED FISH

This Lenten recipe comes from “A Continual Feast.”  Note the beautiful story of Jesus appearing to the apostles on the shore of Lake Tiberias and preparing fish for his apostles after his resurrection (John 21:5). Preparing and eating food together is one of the most basic and immediate ways of communicating our love, as Christ reminds us here.  While we do not have any recipes from the time of Christ, we do know what foods were available and used by the Jews of Palestine during his lifetime. This recipe uses that background for inspiration.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. of any fresh or defrosted fish; smaller fish or filets or steaks can be left whole while larger fish should be split

• 4 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
  
  

• Salt (to taste)

• Olive oil

• Red wine vinegar or lemon juice (see note below)

• Lettuce

• Greek or other strongly flavored olives

• Optional: chopped fresh mint leaves

Directions: Clean, rinse, and salt the fish. Rub with garlic, and brush with oil. Preheat the broiler. Place the fish in an oiled pan (you can add parchment or foil before oiling for easy cleanup). For smaller fish, broil fish about 3 inches from the flame (the higher rack) or about 5 inches (the lower rack) for larger fish. Split fish should be broiled skin side down. While cooking, base generously with olive oil and a little vinegar or lemon juice.

When ready, remove the fish from the oven and serve on a bed of lettuce, surrounded by olives. Naan or pita bread would be a natural companion to the dish.

The article and picture are from Aleteia freeskyline | Shutterstock | Altered by Aleteia

Recipe of the Month - NOT

It sounded  good --  Cantoaloupe Mint Agua Fresca.  It was OK.  It just wasn't worth the trouble.  You puree cantaloupe.  Then mash it through a sieve.  That was a pain but it was doable.  But after all that, all you got was about two cups.  Not worth it.

1 cantaloupe                                                   1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 cups of cold water                                  few sprigs mint (I used basil from my garden.)

Cut the cantaloupe up and puree it in a blender.  Strain the puree through a strainer to produce juice.  Pour the juice into a pitcher and add water, lemon juice and basil.  Refrigerate for an hour.

Delicious Blessings

The temperature outside was 18 degrees and we had ten brave crazy hikers come to walk in the woods around Noon Hill, Medfield.  I was amazed at the beauty of winter.  My favorite image is the ice around branches dipping into the water.  I should say dipping into the ice.

We walked for about an hour and a half, stopping for hot tea and Mary Connor's apple bread:




1/2 cup melted butter                                                     1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup of sugar                                                                1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs                                                                             1 teaspoon baking powder 
2 cups of flour                                                                2 tablespoons buttermilk
1/4 teaspoon salt                                                             1 cup chopped unpeeled apples
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt the butter in a large bowl and add the sugar gradually. Add beaten eggs and mix.

In a smaller bowl mix the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

Add half of the flour mixture to the big bowl. Mix.  Add one tablespoon of buttermilk.  Mix. Add the rest of the flour mixture.  Mix.  Add the other tablespoon of buttermilk.  Add vanilla.  Mix.  Add the chopped apple.  Mix. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Butter a bread pan.  Pour the mixture into the pan.  When the oven is the right temperature, put the bread pan into the oven and bake for 55 minutes.

Parchment paper lines the bread pan.

You have no idea how delicious hot tea and apple bread can be on a freezing winter hike.  Thank God for such blessings.

Mary talking to Nick

"Cloistered" Pizza

One of my "cloistered brothers" makes the most delicious pizza.  Here is his recipe.  It makes about 6 large pizzas.

Crust

1 -  2-pound bag of flour
1/2  of a box of pancake mix
4 teaspoons of oregano
3 ounces of sugar
2 teaspoons of garlic powder
2 teaspoons of onion powder
2 teaspoons of black pepper

Mix and let it sit for about six hours.  This makes it easier to roll out and handle.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare your toppings:

Toppings

3 jars of any pizza sauce
2 tubs of your favorite cheese
5 bars of provolone cheese
2-3 whole onions
2-3 green peppers
pepperoni and hard salami

Prepare the crust: roll into pan size, handle and stretch to fit the pan.  Butter the pans well.  Butter the bottom of the crust, too.  Butter the top of the crust.  Bake the crust for 10 minutes.  Butter the top and bottom, again. Add your toppings.  Bake for about 10-12 minutes.  Enjoy.

Elephant Stew

Jagacida

The St. Vincent de Paul Society was selling  cookbooks, after Mass.  Since I've been looking for a recipe for Jag, I bought one.  I didn't find any Jag recipes, but I did find one interesting recipe--elephant stew.  This is from St. Anthony's St. Vincent de Paul Society's, cookbook, Taste and See, page 8.

Ingredients:         1 elephant         brown gravy          salt & pepper          2 rabbits

Directions:  Cut elephant into bite-size pieces (this will take about 4 months).  Cook over kerosene at 525 degrees until tender (about 5 months).  Add salt and pepper and cover with brown gravy.  This will serve 3,800 people.  If more are expected, add 2 rabbits.  Do this only if absolutely necessary as most people do not like to find hare in their stew.