Comfort food casserole

With Mother’s Day fast approaching, I thought I would share one of my mother’s classic recipes – spaghetti beef casserole. She made this casserole often when I was growing up, and there is no greater comfort food than that made with love by a mother.

This is great winter fare, but also perfect for a rainy day or when you want a break from the usual spaghetti and meat balls. Kids love it.

I usually make enough for two casserole dishes, so that one can be frozen for another day, but if you have hungry youngsters in the house, both may get eaten in one sitting!

Here’s what you will need – ground beef, bacon, spaghetti, tomato soup and cream of mushroom soup, cheese, onion, parmesan cheese, and this time I added a can of mushrooms for something different.

First, boil the spaghetti. I often make a bit of extra spaghetti and a bit of extra beef so that I can have two portions.

(By the way, I love this Cuisinart pot, which has a colander insert for boiling and then draining pasta. It also has a steamer insert for vegetables.)

While the pasta is boiling, dice the onions and the bacon, and drain the can of mushrooms – or dice fresh mushrooms (if you want to add mushrooms. Lots of kid don’t eat them, so they are optional.)

I fried the bacon, then removed it from the pan to drain the fat. I didn’t take a picture of this. Oops.

Fry the onions and add the beef, along with garlic and any spices you would like to add. I usually add Italian seasoning, and I added Frank’s hot sauce as well. If you’re using fresh mushrooms, fry them with the bacon.

Mix it all up and continue frying until the beef is browned. The Pampered Chef mix and chop is great for breaking up ground beef.

Once the beef is browned, drain the can of mushrooms and throw it in. Add the bacon.

Meanwhile, your pasta should be done, so drain it and put it back in a big pot. Add the tomato soup and the cream of mushroom soup.

I grated about a cup of cheddar cheese and put in half with the pasta. The amount of cheese is really up to you. I also added parmesan cheese.

Stir in the beef mixture and stir the whole mixture until well blended. I started with a spoon but switched to the pasta tosser as it works best for mixing pasta.

Scoop the mixture into casserole dishes. It’s sometimes difficult to get the meat and pasta scooped up together, so I try to ensure I have equal parts of meat in each dish by mixing once in the casserole dish as well.

Here I made one casserole dish and two freezer dishes for future meals. Top with additional parmesan cheese and the remainder of the grated cheddar cheese.

Bake uncovered at 325 for one hour.

We had it with homemade caesar salad and red wine. It was delish, just as mom used to make!

Here’s the printable recipe: