Hi
all,
Sorry for my absence. We had a lot going on at home and then a strep throat hit me like a brick. If you haven’t had strep before, believe me when I say you’re not missing anything. I have never felt that horrible. I could not get out of bed for three days. I didn’t eat for almost a week! That says a lot about how sick I was. This girl loves to eat.
Today I’m reflecting on the first meal I ever made. It was somewhere in the 7th-8th grade, and I made spaghetti and meatballs for my brothers. I laugh thinking about how I got the recipe for meatballs off the Parmesan cheese container. Spaghetti just seemed like a good idea. It’s such a comforting and filling meal that has become my go-to throughout the years. When I have a short amount of time but don’t want anything fancy I’ll reach for the pasta and sauce. I always make sure to keep the ingredients in the pantry.
Spaghetti isn’t an overly complicated recipe. Most people stick to whatever recipe they have on hand. I wanted to give you guy’s tips on how to elevate regular spaghetti and make it your own. I’ve tweaked what I do over the years, making changes as necessary. While you can choose any brand of spaghetti noodles (I usually pick what is on sale that week), I tend to pick the same sauce. I prefer Ragú meat sauce.
What you will need:
1.
One
package of spaghetti noodles
2.
One
pound of ground beef
3.
One
jar of red sauce
4.
Half
a tablespoon of pepper
5.
One
and a half tablespoons of salt
6.
One
tablespoon of Italian seasoning
7.
Two
tablespoons of room temperature butter
8.
One
tablespoon of garlic powder
9.
1/4
cup of sour cream OR cream cheese (either works fine it’s just a matter of
preference)
Cook spaghetti noodles according to package. Add one tablespoon of salt to the water. Before draining pasta, make sure to keep 1/4 cup of the water, this will help your sauce. Once drained add the butter to your noodles and carefully mix until butter is melted in noodles.
Brown
ground beef until cooked thoroughly. Add garlic powder, 1/2 tablespoon of salt,
pepper, and Italian seasoning. Next, add the jar of sauce and 1/4 cup of the
reserved water. Mix in your sour cream/cream cheese. Simmer for 10 minutes on
low.
This next step is something that I didn’t use to do. For the longest time, I would keep the noodles and sauce separate. Until one day I heard that adding your noodles to your sauté pan with the sauce is a game changer. I firmly agree! If you let the ingredients blend for a couple of minutes, it adds to the flavor.
If
you have kids (or adults) that don’t like it if their food touches each other,
feel free to skip this step. I still recommend you give it a try just once. The
way I see it, spaghetti is going to end up on my counters, floor, booster seat,
Barbie's hair, on the fridge handle...I mean, I could go on. I choose to mix
the sauce and noodles without hesitation. My kids absolutely love spaghetti.
It’s about the only meal that will have them sitting peacefully and quietly for
more than 5 minutes. Part of that could be because sometimes they choose to
ditch the silverware altogether and use their hands, often getting spaghetti in
every little nook and cranny but they are so delighted to be eating it. It may
look like a giant mess after they’re done, but pat yourself on the back because
for once you were able to eat your meal without re-warming it five times.
I’d say that makes for a good night.
With love,
Carolina
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