Life, the Universe, and Cheese. Lots and lots of Cheese.
So I thought I'd share the recipe I made last night. And by "made," I mean I found myself in the middle of Kroger with no recipe and no bright ideas and a dinner to make.
I came home with the following:
2 packages fat-free Mozzarella
1 package full-fat mild cheddar and monterey jack
1jar pasta sauce (I like tomato-basil, but I don't think it much matters)
2 cans condensed cream-of-object soup (I used celery, but I have to think any of them would work and I was curious about the notion of using the cheddar soup.)
1lb pasta (spaghettini, in this case.)
I wound up also using:
4 eggs
garlic powder
dried basil (my basil plant not yet having recovered from the pesto escapade a week ago. Note to self: two or three basil plants next year.)
dried oregano
I arrived home and began boiling the pasta and preheating the oven (to 350 degrees). When it was almost done, I mixed 1pkg mozarella and the cheddar/jack/whatsis in with the four eggs and both the cans of soup. I added some garlic powder and the dried herbs, no clue how much. Probably a tablespoon of garlic and a teaspoon of the other two.
Pasta got drained and returned to the pot, cheese mixture was dumped in and frantically stirred to try and prevent the eggs scrambling (note to self: TEMPER the egg mixture, you dolt.)
Added jar of pasta sauce.
Greased pyrex pan, added alarming pink pasta mixture, sprinkled remaining package of mozarella on top, covered the lot with foil, and put it in the oven. Belatedly remembered to turn off the stovetop. Mm, charred spaghetti-egg-cheese-thing.
Baked the dish for 45 minutes and uncovered to bake for an extra five to try and brown the cheese. This didn't work, I suspect because the cheese had no fat. It did get nicely crispy, though.
The end result was a very pleasant surprise given the glop that went in the pan, and was some missing link between mom's spaghetti casserole and a baked macaroni and cheese.
I will probably reduce the cooking time next time as the pasta was probably two minutes away from burning on the bottom, but then, if you're a fan of burnt edges that would be delightful. I would probably also leave out the oregano. I'm not a huge fan.
So there you have it. Let me know what you think if you make it.
I came home with the following:
2 packages fat-free Mozzarella
1 package full-fat mild cheddar and monterey jack
1jar pasta sauce (I like tomato-basil, but I don't think it much matters)
2 cans condensed cream-of-object soup (I used celery, but I have to think any of them would work and I was curious about the notion of using the cheddar soup.)
1lb pasta (spaghettini, in this case.)
I wound up also using:
4 eggs
garlic powder
dried basil (my basil plant not yet having recovered from the pesto escapade a week ago. Note to self: two or three basil plants next year.)
dried oregano
I arrived home and began boiling the pasta and preheating the oven (to 350 degrees). When it was almost done, I mixed 1pkg mozarella and the cheddar/jack/whatsis in with the four eggs and both the cans of soup. I added some garlic powder and the dried herbs, no clue how much. Probably a tablespoon of garlic and a teaspoon of the other two.
Pasta got drained and returned to the pot, cheese mixture was dumped in and frantically stirred to try and prevent the eggs scrambling (note to self: TEMPER the egg mixture, you dolt.)
Added jar of pasta sauce.
Greased pyrex pan, added alarming pink pasta mixture, sprinkled remaining package of mozarella on top, covered the lot with foil, and put it in the oven. Belatedly remembered to turn off the stovetop. Mm, charred spaghetti-egg-cheese-thing.
Baked the dish for 45 minutes and uncovered to bake for an extra five to try and brown the cheese. This didn't work, I suspect because the cheese had no fat. It did get nicely crispy, though.
The end result was a very pleasant surprise given the glop that went in the pan, and was some missing link between mom's spaghetti casserole and a baked macaroni and cheese.
I will probably reduce the cooking time next time as the pasta was probably two minutes away from burning on the bottom, but then, if you're a fan of burnt edges that would be delightful. I would probably also leave out the oregano. I'm not a huge fan.
So there you have it. Let me know what you think if you make it.