Something Really American: My Grandma's Chili-Mac aka American Chop Suey

Whenever I'd go to my Grandma's house (my Mom's Mom) she'd have something yummy waiting for me. I don't know if everything she made was so delicious because it was inextricably linked to her, or if everything was just that good.

My Grandma did everything in a calm and patient manner, and this carried over into her cooking. Watching her in the kitchen was a pleasure; everything was done with the utmost care and precision.

She's probably the most consistent cook I've ever known. Her dishes were always cooked to perfection. At chef school, the teachers talked about consistency being one of the most important attributes to a good chef's food. Customers come to eat the same dish repeatedly, and expect it to be the same as it was the last time. If you can achieve this as a cook, time and time again, you've accomplished something really great. My Grandma was an expert at this.



At any rate, my Grandma's chili-mac was probably my favorite dish. I used to request her to make it all the time. After she passed away, there was no more chili-mac; she had not left a recipe and I had never learned how to make it. However, there was something in the college dining hall that was almost the same (though not nearly as good as my Grandma's) called American chop suey. So during college, I sort of managed to satisfy the craving.



I have since consulted my mom, and we've tried to replicate the chili-mac recipe, with moderate success. Please try out the recipe below! It's very easy to make.

Grandma's Chili-Mac
Makes 4 servings

1 lb lean ground beef
2 tbsp canola oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 large stick of celery, chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne powder
1/2 freshly black ground pepper
salt to taste
2 cups uncooked macaroni

Heat the canola oil and sweat the onions until soft. This should take approximately five minutes on a medium heat.



Next, add the beef in small chunks. Brown the beef until all red color is gone, approximately five minutes.





Stir in the tomato paste, and then add all of the remaining ingredients, aside from the macaroni. Bring to a boil and then turn down to simmer for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally.



In a separate pot, cook the macaroni. Once the sauce is cooked, the macaroni can be added, and it can be served immediately. Chili-mac is definitely a comfort food. It's also a good way to get kids to eat their meat and veggies in disguise... the beauty of tomato sauce!

Penne alla' Amatriciana aka Bacon Pasta

This recipe is an old favorite of mine. I think it's one of the first things I learned to cook. Who doesn't love something with pancetta or bacon as one of the flavors?



Penne alla' Amatriciana
Serves 4 for dinner

Ingredients
1/4-1lb of chopped/cut bacon or pancetta
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 cans of petite diced tomatoes
1 small can of tomato sauce
1/2 cup of white wine
1 pound of penne pasta
1 tsp of red pepper flakes
1 tsp of freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste
Parmesan cheese

Quick tip: It's really easy to cut bacon with scissors.



Brown the bacon in a large deep bottomed pan. When the bacon is done, remove it from the pan and set aside. Throw away the bacon fat left in the pan by pouring it out. Do not wash the pan; the bits of bacon left in the bottom of the pan have a lot of flavor.





Next, add the olive oil to the pan and sweat the onion and garlic with the red pepper flakes, and black pepper until the onions are soft.





Add the white wine to the pan, and reduce the mixture until there is almost no liquid left.



Finally, add the bacon, the tomato sauce, and the two cans of diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil.



Turn down and simmer the sauce for approximately 30 minutes to 1 hour, stirring occasionally.



Cook the pasta until al dente. Add to the sauce, and stir for about one minute, until the sauce binds to the pasta.

Serve piping hot, with Parmesan cheese to garnish.

A Great Cookie To Make With Kids: Russian Teacakes aka Snowballs

I've been making this recipe with my mom since I can remember; it's kind of our Christmas tradition. I have many fond memories of making these cookies.

At any rate, the teacakes are not only one of the easiest things I've ever baked, but are also very kid friendly. There are many jobs kids can participate in while making these; measuring ingredients, rolling the dough into balls, and covering them in confectionery sugar when they come out of the oven. The best part is, however, is that there are no eggs in this recipe, so mom's don't have to worry about their kids taking a little nibble of the dough or licking their fingers.



Russian Teacakes
Makes approximately four dozen cookies

Ingredients
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 confectionery sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour, sifted
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup finally chopped (walnuts) nuts (optional, to be stirred in last)
extra confectionery sugar for rolling





Sift the dry ingredients (flour, salt) together and set them aside.





Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla together.





Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and stir together.



Once the mixture starts coming together, use your hands and form a ball with the dough.



Refrigerate the dough until firm (usually 30 minutes to 1 hour). Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.



Form once inch balls with the dough by rolling them in the palm of your hand.



Place the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet quite close together (they don't really spread much).



Bake for approximately 10 minutes. I can tell they are cooked with they start to slightly crack at the top.






Cool for a few minutes, but while still warm, roll all the cookies in confectionery sugar. After rolling all the cookies once, roll them for a second time. Then allow them to cool completely before storing.

Ugly Ravioli (aka Roasted Vegetable & Pancetta Ravioli)

Ugly, maybe, but good? Definitely! We found this recipe for Roasted Veggie Ravioli with Crispy Pancetta on Jaden’s blog.

I tried (somewhat unsuccessfully) to capture the sheer scale of the mess I made while making this pasta. Homemade pasta is fun and delicious, but oh so messy. Which makes it even more fun in my opinion. :)

Our raviolis were ugly. I think we made them too big and they broke and had to be patched and weren’t square by any means. Not nearly as nice-looking as Jaden’s. But once you got beyond their looks, they really were quite delicious. The sauce is light and flavorful, which in our experience is hard to do in a pasta sauce.

Want to try your hand at these? Hopefully yours will be prettier than ours!
Check out the recipe here.