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Jae's Kimbap

Woman Connected to Recipe: Jae Kim

Submitted by John Kim


About Jae and her Kimbap:
Jae is my mom and she always made sure that I, my siblings and rest of my extended family ate well! She brought Korean food and culture to America when my parents immigrated in 1969.

Almost all of my mom’s cooking is done without a recipe. She can eyeball amounts, spices, seasonings, oils. It’s a dash of this here and a scoop of that there. And no need for a timer. She just knows.

Kimbap is my favorite. It’s almost always served when the whole extended family gathers. It looks easy, but the taste and texture are actually quite complex. It holds all of the intended flavors in one perfectly round finger food. The speed at which my family - my kids especially - can take down rolls of kimbap is impressive. Almost as impressive as the skill and speed at which my mom can cook the ingredients, assemble in rolls and cut into perfect slices. She has to move fast because you can’t just have one. One turns to two, which turns to five and then ten.


INGREDIENTS

  • 1 package of nori (big pieces of seaweed)

  • 8 cups of cooked white rice

  • 6 Tbsp of rice wine vinegar

  • 1 tsp of salt

  • 4 large carrots + mandolin

  • 1/2 tsp of salt

  • 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil

  • 1 bunch of spinach

  • 1/2 tsp of salt

  • 2 tsp of sesame oil

  • 1 scallion chopped into fine pieces

  • 1/4 tsp of black pepper

  • 2 tsp of sugar

  • 3 Tbsp of soy sauce

  • 2 tsp of sesame oil

  • 1/2 Tbsp of vegetable oil

  • 1/2 pound of thinly sliced beef ribeye

  • 10-12 long strips of Korean pickle danmuji (you can buy these precut)

  • 4 large eggs

  • 1/4 tsp salt

  • 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil

  • 1 small bowl of water (to seal nori when rolling kimbap)

DIRECTIONS

  1. Mix together the pepper, sugar, soy sauce, and sesame oil in a bowl. When it is mixed together, add the beef. Set aside to marinate.

  2. Shred the carrots into matchsticks using a mandolin. Heat oil in skillet on medium/high heat. Add carrots and salt and cook until softened -- about 5-10 minutes. Set aside in a bowl.

  3. Wash spinach thoroughly. Boil 4 cups of water with a 1/4 tsp salt in a medium-sized pot. Add spinach and cook for - about 60-90 sec, just until wilted. Quickly drain spinach into colander and rinse with cold water. Mix with 1/4 tsp of salt and sesame oil.

  4. Whisk the eggs in a bowl. Add the salt. Heat half of the oil in a skillet on medium/high heat. Pour half of the egg mixture into the pan and spread into a thin layer. Cook for about 30 sec. Then flip and cook the other side for about 15 sec. Remove and place on cutting board. Repeat with remaining egg and oil. Slice egg into 7-8 strips each. Set aside.

  5. Mix in the salt and vinegar into the rice.

  6. Get the marinated beef. Heat oil in skillet on medium/high heat. Add meat and saute until cooked. About 3-5 minutes. Set aside in a bowl.

  7. Take a bamboo rolling mat and put 1 sheet of nori on. Take about 2/3 cup of rice and spread the rice evenly in a thin layer across the bottom 2/3 of the nori.

  8. First put 1-2 Tbsp of bulgogi (beef) in a line across the middle of the rice. Then on top of the bulgogi put about 2 Tbsp of carrots. Next on top of the carrots put about 3-4 strands of spinach. After that, put 1 strip of danmuji (the Korean pickle) on top of the spinach. Finally put 1-2 egg strips over everything like a blanket.

  9. Pinch the edge of the nori and the bamboo with your thumb and first finger. Wrap the rest of your fingers around the filling. Pull the nori and bamboo just over the filing and squeeze. Take only the bamboo and wrap the roll with the rest of the seaweed. Dab the free end of the nori with water. Wrap the bamboo around the whole roll and squeeze. Unroll the bamboo mat and you have a roll of kimbap. Repeat until all ingredients run out

Helen's Green Eggs (and Ham)

Woman Connected to Recipe: Helen Lauraine

Submitted by Lauraine Palm Singh (Helen’s daughter)


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About Helen and her Green Eggs (and Ham):
Helen Lauraine (my mother) was born in 1920 as the only daughter of Claude and Lucile Lauraine. From an early age, Helen was adventurous and fun-loving. As a teenager, she talked two girlfriends into hiking into the mountains around Los Angeles. The trio became lost, spent the night in the woods, and the sheriff had to rescue them the next day!

Helen continued with this daring attitude as a wife, public health nurse, and mother of four. We lived in a small farming community in Nevada where our father was the Forest Ranger. Our prankster mother joined the local chapter of Beta Sigma Phi where she participated in numerous community service projects.

In addition, she dove enthusiastically into her role each year as someone’s “Secret Pal”. One year, for St. Patrick’s Day, she treated her Secret Pal (a good friend of our family) to Green Eggs and Ham. It involved sneaking into the Secret Pal’s home while she was away and injecting green food dye into the eggs in the refrigerator! The next morning when the friend cracked open the eggs for breakfast – Voila! Green eggs!

Helen was an awesome wife and mother who delighted in life and especially, her family. She continues to be an inspiration to us all!


INGREDIENTS

  • 1 dozen eggs (raw)

  • Green food coloring

  • 1 syringe and needle

DIRECTIONS

Inject a small amount of green food coloring into each raw egg. Wipe off any dye on the outside of the egg and replace the egg in the carton with the injection hole faInject a small amount of green food coloring into each raw egg. Wipe off any dye on the outside of the egg and replace the egg in the carton with the injection hole facing down. Enjoy the friend’s reaction!ing down. Enjoy the friend’s reaction!

Dada's Kontomere (Spinach Stew)

Woman Connected to Recipe: Mercy Dake (Dada)

Submitted by Ethelind Kaba (Mercy’s granddaughter)


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About Mercy Dake:
It's almost the one-year passing--3/22/19 to be exact-- of my grandmother, whom we all called Dada. Dada was a mighty oak. She raised 11 biological, five others that my grandpa brought home at various points. And by the time of her passing, there were some 41 grandchildren and 34 great grandchildren.

Dada’s home was the the home of family refugees, those whose parents had to move to other countries to pursue their dream, those who could not afford their children, and those who just showed up. I was one of the refugee grandchildren. 

My mother and father moved to Liberia shortly after getting married. When I was six months old, Dada came to take me back to Ghana so that mom and dad could focus on their careers. I lived with Dada in Ghana, or rather Nsawam, a small town outside of the capital city of Accra, we lived in a compound that had four bedrooms and a living room which served as a bedroom sometimes, a veranda for the lazy afternoon sun while we indulged in mangoes or tangerines from the trees in the yard. At some point, before they built bathrooms in the house, we bathed in covered huts outside and used a wooden enclosure as the toilet house.

We cooked meals outside. Dada tended to our small farm and looked after Papa, my grandfather, who had suffered a stroke. Dada would walk barefoot from the farm, feed the chickens, send us to the market, coordinate dinner, and yell or whip us in the name of love and the Lord, all in one unbelievable swoop. She woke up around 4am daily (I know because I slept on the floor or beside her in her bedroom) sang her prayers while calling out the names of every single child, grandchild, cousin, pastor, pastor’s wife, and anyone else she thought deserved a prayer.

On Sundays, she wore her best dress and a gold or pearl necklace. It didn’t matter if she was walking from the bedroom with a pail containing Papa’s bodily fluids to spill in the gutters, if you asked her for a picture, she’d have to adjust her headwrap and yell for some jewelry so she can “be presentable.” We feared her, we adored her, and no other opinion mattered but hers. 

What have I learned from Dada? Selflessness without asking for anything back (even though I falter in this often), hard-work (yes, I can be lazy at times), grace (always grace) through any challenge, and a lot of good meals.


Dada's Kontomere (Spinach Stew)

INGREDIENTS

  • ½ cup palm oil or vegetable oil 

  • 1 medium red onion, chopped

  • 4 cloves garlic, minced

  • 3 tablespoons minced ginger (1 ounce)

  • Kosher salt

  • Ground pepper

  • 1 cup diced tomatoes

  • ¾ cup egusi (ground melon seeds) OPTIONAL

  • Smoked salmon (or any choice of protein)

  • 1 pound spinach, washed, dried and roughly chopped; or frozen spinach

  • 3 large sweet (yellow) plantains, peeled and boiled in salted water until just tender

INSTRUCTIONS

1) Heat oil in a saucepan, saute onions; add garlic, ginger, and tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes.

2) Add salmon (or choice of protein cut into preferred pieces), salt, and pepper to season. Cook for 10 minutes or until meat is half-way tender and cooked through.

3) Add spinach.

4) Mix egusi in half cup water and add to the stew.

5) Cook for another 10 minutes or until spinach is tender and meat is completely cooked.

6) Serve with hot boiled/steamed plantain (or cooked rice).

7) Garnish with slices of avocado.

Jen's Mussels in White Wine

Woman Connected to Recipe: Jen Roesler

Submitted by Jesse Roesler (Jen’s husband)


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About Jen and her Mussels in White Wine:
Jen is my beautiful wife who made me fall in love with her over my first bowl of mussels in garlic and white wine. This was the first dish Jen ever cooked for me and began our going-on 15 year relationship with a single meal.


INGREDIENTS

  • 2 lbs of mussels (scrubbed & de-bearded)

  • 1 onion, minced

  • 3 garlic cloves, minced

  • 1 tomato

  • 1 cup Vino Verde (or other dry white wine)

  • fresh basil leaves, torn

  • 1 tbsp EVOO

  • flaky sea salt (to taste)

INSTRUCTIONS

Sauté the onions in the olive oil over medium heat until soft (3-5 min).

Add garlic and sauté another 2-3 min.

Add tomato and white wine, bring to a bubble.

Add mussels and steam until they open, shaking the pan frequently.

Once open, add basil leaves and salt and serve with a crusty bread and the rest of your white wine.

Gita's Mo-mos

Woman Connected to Recipe: Gita Bhutia

Submitted by Sanjita Pradhan (Gita’s cousin)


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About Gita:
Gita is my cousin. She is much older than me and a great role model . Many girls and women did not have a chance to go to school in Nepal in the 1960's-70's. She was privileged enough to attend a great school and used it to advance herself. She ended up being a teacher in a prestigious school in India in those days when many women did not attend school. She had a tough life but lived it with grace.

About Gita's Mo-mos:
This is originally a Tibetan recipe. My cousin Gita married a man with Tibetan origin. In the Nepali culture we are not supposed to marry someone outside of our caste. Gita broke all rules and had the courage to marry who she loved regardless of his caste.

Because of her marriage with this Tibetan man, we got to learn this recipe. We made this every time she visited us. Till today, this is a recipe and food we make as a family.

It is a rather tedious process, so all of us sit around the table and make it and eat it for hours. One person rolls the dough, which is one of the tough jobs, the other one puts in the filling, the other one folds it and puts it neatly in the steamer, one person is usually in the stove monitoring the cooking and everyone obviously eats it.

When we were young, we used to have a contest of who eats the most. I may have eaten up to 30 momos at a time, my brother might have eaten 40. Even when we are full we can always eat one more of these.

This is one of the most popular dishes in Nepal and just like a taco stand in every corner in LA, you will find a momo shop in every corner in Nepal.


INGREDIENTS

  • 1 lb ground chicken (can use ground pork, ground turkey or a mix of these meats)

  • 1/2 cup finely chopped cabbage (sneak those veggies in, add more if you’d like)

  • 1 bunch green onions, finely chopped

  • 1 large onion, finely chopped (don’t like onion? You will never know it was in)

  • 2 tablespoon finely minced ginger

  • 3 tablespoon ground cumin

  • 2 tablespoon ground coriander

  • Salt to taste

  • 6 tbsp olive oil (chicken needs more oil, pork has natural fat so use less oil)

  • 6-8 tbsp water

  • mo:mo wrapper/Wanton wrapper (found in most grocery stores now but always available in the Asian grocery store)

INSTRUCTIONS

To make the sauce:
Take Roma or any other tomatoes, cut them in cubes, microwave until soft or cooked (usually 2-3 minutes for 2 tomatoes and depending on microwave power). Add salt and desired amount of chilies and blend. (Thai chilies are the best, but you can use serrano, habanero or any other chili you prefer, no chili if you prefer)

To make the Mo-Mos:

  1. Combine all the ingredients and mix well and viola your filling is ready. Not sure if there is enough salt? Microwave a small portion and taste!

  2. Make sure the wrappers are thawed/defrosted.

  3. Take one wrapper at a time and put some water around the edges, put filling inside and wrap or fold in desired shape.

  4. Fill a steamer (pasta steamer works well) with water and grease the steamer basket with oil or oil spray.

  5. Arrange neatly in the steamer leaving some space in between momos allowing them space to expand during the cooking process. Steam for 8-10 minutes.

  6. Enjoy it hot with tomato achar.

Remedios' "How to Preserve a Husband"

Woman Connected to Recipe: Remedios Abinoja Yu

Submitted by Tracy Yu Stronsky (Remedios’ daughter)


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About Remedios:
All moms are special. My mom is special because of the tremendous amount of effort she puts into being a part of my life, and really not just me. She forges connections with all those she loves in the most special ways. My 11-year-old is an avid reader, and she reads the same books as her so she can discuss them with her. She trades recipes with me so we can share kitchen stories. She’s always checking in. She’s always present.

About Remedios’ “How to Preserve a Husband”:
It’s impossible for me to choose a recipe (ya know, one that produces actual food) that my mom has passed down to me, for two reasons.

First of all, my parents are from the Philippines. In the Philippines, they did not cook. They both grew up in households where there was a cook, or two, which is very commonplace.

When they came to the United States in 1971 they learned to cook together. They still cook together. Always.

Which brings me to reason number two. My parents are a cooking team. If my mom starts a dish, then my dad finishes it. I have never seen them cook solo. And, all their recipes are in their heads and in their hearts. They’re constantly evolving are impossible to write down.

Just today I was cooking a traditional Filipino dish called chicken adobo. I called them to confirm that the recipe I had clipped from a newspaper had their seal of approval. My dad spoke first and changed the ingredient amounts at least three times, noted that some ingredients were optional, and told me to “add a little water”. When I asked him how much was “a little“ he did not give me a straight answer. Then my mom chimed in only to change the ingredient amounts two more times. They both called me twice each to check on the progress of the chicken adobo. And when it was all said and done what did I learn… I needed to add more water.

This “recipe” was actually hand written by my mom and given to me on my wedding day (photo below). It’s the closest thing I’ll ever receive from my parents that constitutes a “recipe”.


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INSTRUCTIONS

Dear Trace,

Hi sweetheart, it’s me who care so much about you. That’s why I thought I’d send you this recipe - it’s from my cookbook. It’s unique but proven very effective. So here it is.

  1. First, use care and selection. Get one that is not too young, but tender and healthy. If you choose one recklessly it may not keep.

  2. Don’t put in hot water. This makes them turn sour. Sweeten with smiles and spice, with patience. All varieties will respond.

  3. To assure a wonderful consistency, stir gently, never beat. And don’t leave unattended for long periods of time.

  4. To add delicious flavor, sprinkle generously with praise and appreciation. The poorest specimen may be improved if you follow these instructions and will keep for an unlimited number of years in any climate.

  5. Remember: Frequent exposure to cold temperatures has been known to damage this dish permanently. Keep a small, steady flame going at all times.

Love,
Mom
Say hi to Leon

Esther's Cream Corn Hotdish

Woman Connected to Recipe: Esther Wanttie

Submitted by Kay Myers (Esther’s daughter)


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About Esther:
She’s my mother who passed away 2 months before my wedding 40 years ago.

About Esther’s Cream Corn Hotdish:
This is probably not her invention but every time I make it I think of her. Everyone seems to love it and that makes me so happy she shared it with me. We’re Finnish but I don’t believe this is . It’s just a good Minnesota Hotdish. Enjoy!


INGREDIENTS

  • 1 lb. chow mein meat

  • 2 - 15 oz. cans of Cream Corn. 

  • 1 1/2 can of Cream of Chicken soup 

  • 1/2 can of milk 

  • 1 onion 

  • 3 stalks of celery 

  • 1pkg of egg noodles 

  • potato chips

INSTRUCTIONS

Brown meat with onion and celery. Drain. Stir in corn and soup.

Cook noodles al dente. Stir into mixture.

Put in sprayed casserole pan. Bake covered at *350 for 45 minutes.

Place crushed potato chips (optional) on top bake uncovered for 15-20 or until chips are golden brown.

Virginia's Spaghetti Alla Carbonara

Woman Connected to Recipe: Virginia Perl

Submitted by Regina Folken


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About Virginia:
Virginia Perl first came into my life as a series of stories and photographs. At some point in my teen years she became my Auntie Gin. She took care of me like a mother, chatted through my loneliness, quelled my anxiety, witnessed my elation and supported my decisions. She was the first person I would tell, call and ask. My fondness for her and my appreciation for the impact she made on my everyday was a treasure.

About Virginia's Spaghetti Alla Carbonara:
Born into poverty on a chicken farm, Virginia was a force of beauty , perseverance and grit. This is a recipe past down from her longtime butler and chef Amidas from a period in her life when she had great wealth. She spoke Italian and lived many years in Rome so you can imagine it was perfected in the right place over time. While at one point she lived a life of luxury, she struggled for many years after, overcoming self doubt, alcoholism, unemployment and loss. She was loved, healthy and talented when she died in a tragic car accident a few days before Christmas 2016. She was in a good place in her life and only few weeks from finishing her memoirs. This meal was an easy staple at which we shared many good conversations.


INGREDIENTS

  • 4 tbsps soft butter

  • 2 whole eggs

  • 3 egg yolks

  • 1 cup freshly grated reggiano parmesan

  • freshly ground pepper

  • 1 lb spaghetti

  • 1 lb bacon

  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes

  • 1/2 cup heavy cream

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil

  2. Fry the bacon and save half of the bacon grease. Add heavy cream & the red pepper flakes and keep warm. When the bacon cools, crumble it into the grease / cream mixture.

  3. In a small bowl, cream the butter by beating it against the sides of the bowl with a wooden spoon until it becomes soft and fluffy. Set aside. 

  4. In another small bowl, beat the eggs and the egg yolks with a fork until they are well blended. Then stir in half of the grated cheese. Set aside. 

  5. Cook the spaghetti (7-12 minutes, according to the package instructions), drain and throw back into the empty hot pot.  

  6. Stir in the butter to coat the strands of spaghetti. Then stir in the hot bacon / cream mixture... keep stirring. Finally add the eggs & cheese and stir into the spaghetti. The hot spaghetti and bacon / cream will cook the eggs on contact. Season with salt and some grindings of pepper. serve with the grated cheese on the side.

Kate's Tuna Noodle Casserole

Woman Connected to Recipe: Kate Bogdewiecz

Submitted by Beth Bogdewiecz (Kate’s daughter)


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About Kate:
She's my mother, and she's been an inspiring role model for both me and my sisters.

About Kate's Tuna Noodle Casserole:
My mom's mother (also pictured) was from England, and my mom's father was from Italy. My mom stayed at home to care for me and my sisters - which is a huge feat considering we're all just over a year apart in age.

She often found recipes that were simple, that you could throw together in one go. We came to love casseroles, and now they are a part of our family traditions, even on Christmas morning (with our annual Egg Casserole).


INGREDIENTS

  • 6 oz Bowtie Pasta (or other medium noodles)

  • 1 can of tuna (drained)

  • 1/2 cup mayo

  • 1/3 cup chopped onion

  • 1 cup chopped celery

  • 1-10.5 oz can of creamy soup (like Cream of Celery, Cream of Chicken, or Cream of Mushroom)

  • 1/2 cup of milk

  • 1 cup shredded sharp American cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

Cook noodles and drain. Combine everything into a casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Yum!

Petrina's Chicken Spedini

Woman Connected to Recipe: Petrina Riccobono

Submitted by Francesca Fultineer (Petrina’s granddaughter)


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About Petrina:
She was my grandmother. She was the best cook I’ve ever known and her cooking was the family.

About Petrina's Chicken Spedini:
These “little birds” were a family treat. They are rather labor intensive so Grandma would only be so many of these tiny bits of rolled goodness. We would count them out and divide them evenly amounts us. This was the only way to avoid a lot of Italians shouting at each other over dinner.


Petrina's Chicken Spedini

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 chicken breasts

  • 1-2 c breadcrumbs

  • 1 c olive oil

  • 2 lbs fresh Asiago cheese

  • 2 large sweet onions

  • 2-3 fresh bay leaves

INSTRUCTIONS

Slice chicken breasts in 1/4 inch thin pieces.
Cube cheese.
Roll chicken slices around each cube of cheese.
Dip pieces in olive oil then cover in breadcrumbs.
Slice onions thin and line casserole pan with onions seasoned with salt and pepper.
Toss in the bay leaves to the onions.
Lay the rolled chicken on top of onions.
Cover and cook at 350 for 45 minutes.

Rosemary's Noodles

Woman Connected to Recipe: Rosemary Callan

Submitted by Megan Thibodeau (Rosemary’s granddaughter)


About Rosemary:
Rosemary Callan was my paternal grandmother. She was an only child and lived on the same family farm, on land homesteaded by her Great Uncle, for the entirety of her life. From the age of eight, she was raised without a mom to teach, guide or model for her.

She was a classic Iowa farm wife, who took great care of her husband and five children. She was devoted to her extended family, many of whom were her country neighbors, and was both a local and familial historian with detailed information she kept for sharing with anyone who would listen. She was a talented vocalist who sang in her church choir for over seventy years and a voracious card player, participating in multiple card clubs. She was even honored as the Grand Marshall of her small town parade the summer before she passed away.

As the oldest grandchild and the only one who lived in the immediate vicinity, I had the good fortune to spend a great deal of time with my grandma throughout my childhood and in adulthood, once I returned to live in the area. She was a wonderful grandmother who through example taught me about the importance of God, family, civic engagement and leadership, as evidenced by her devotion to us all and the sharing of her talents with various Catholic, 4-H and Legion groups over many years.

About Rosemary’s Noodles:
Our entire extended family celebrated either Thanksgiving or Christmas each year, traveling in from all over the United States, to share in long established family traditions. Without fail, Grandma would prepare for those family gatherings by cooking.

She was known primarily for four dishes - shrimp cheese (which is admittedly an acquired taste for those who weren't raised on it), Grandma rolls, chicken and noodles, and chocolate chip cookies. She cooked not only enough for us to enjoy during the visit – she made sure she made enough for each of us to take home whatever we wanted as well.

As she got older, she tried to teach all of us children and grandchildren how to make the rolls and noodles. Although they are simple recipes, they never turned out just quite right without Grandma's touch. She passed away in 2007 and while we haven't successfully replicated Grandma's noodles in her absence, we cook chicken and noodles at each family holiday gathering in celebration of the woman we so fiercely loved and admired.


Rosemary's Noodles

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 eggs beaten

  • 3 tablespoons milk

  • Salt

  • Flour

INSTRUCTIONS

Beat together eggs, salt and milk. Start working 1 cup flour into the egg mixture until you can handle it without it sticking. Add more flour if needed.

When you have worked in the flour, shape into sort of a loaf. Cut into 6 pieces. Roll out each piece on a floured surface. As you roll, keep flipping it over and roll on the other side. If it sticks to a spot, just sprinkle on a bit of flour there and work it in with the rolling pin.

Spread out on a table covered with meat wrappers, brown paper bag or something similar. When it gets dry enough so it won’t stick together, roll up and cut into thin slices. Then shake apart and spread out to dry.

Leave the noodles at least 24 hours. Then bag in plastic bag and freeze, or if you wish you can use them as soon as they are cut.


Mildred's Casserole

Woman Connected to Recipe: Mildred Phillips

Submitted by Nina Sharma (Mildred’s granddaughter)


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About Mildred:
Mildred Phillips, my maternal grandmother, was a terrible cook. She burned everything. I remember her making us hamburgers one summer afternoon in Des Moines, and they were so terrible that she threw them out and we drove to Hardee's.

Mildred was born in 1912 in upstate NY, and became a nurse in St. Louis where she met my grandfather circa 1934 -- just as the Great Depression was getting under way. Grandma would laugh with her whole body, and you knew she was in stitches when she stopped making sound and only her shoulders shook.

Mildred had 3 children who bore her 7 grandchildren who bore her 10 posthumous great-grandchildren.

About Mildred’s Casserole:
Grandma's Casserole is the only thing she could consistently cook (aside from gingersnap cookies). It's a wildly simple, cheap, and hearty meal with a stick-to-your-bones quality and a tangy taste that powered her kids through the lean years of WWII, and powered my generation through late nights in college dorms. Thankfully, her kids were much better cooks than she, but they all passed down Grandma's casserole -- as an homage to her, to her thriftiness, and to her zest for life. 


Mildred's Casserole

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 lb ground beef

  • 1 small onion - chopped 

  • 1 can Campbell's cream of celery soup 

  • 1 cup grated cheddar

  • 8 oz noodles (spaghetti or egg work best)

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350  degrees.

Brown the ground beef with the chopped onion.  Drain fat (or don't!).  Mix in soup and cheddar.

Cook noodles according to package directions.  Drain well.  Mix with meat & cheese mixture.  Pour into a casserole dish.  Sprinkle more cheese on top.

Cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes.  

Add more cheese (any kind you wish) if desired. Return to oven until cheese melts.