When I Learned to Love Spaghetti and Meatballs

Growing up in a coal-mining town in Pennsylvania meant different foods served at dinner, depending on where your parents came from.  My little town, about 15 miles Northeast of Pittsburgh, included many nationalities, drawn to the coal mining and steel working opportunities.

Thus was I introduced to Syrian sandwiches, made on bread much thicker and fresher than today’s packaged and often tasteless pita bread.  Or I might have been served that Polish classic, sauerkraut and kielbasa (sausage), or sticks of Greek souvlakia (aka shish kebab).  Or if I were eating at my grandmother’s house, I could count on boiled chicken.

I loved them all, but my favorite food from that time was Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Mom Cooking Tip 129

Draft an ice cream scoop to shape meatballs or burgers, keeping your hands out of raw ground meat.

                                                    See all my Cooking Tips!

Rescuing Food Disasters

Meatball Sandwiches

Unfortunately you can’t just call the Fire Department when you have a food disaster.  Instead you need to call on your ingenuity.  Hunger is a great motivator.  Just ask my brother, who filed this report.

“I was preparing my dinner, having gotten out the three left-over meatballs (from the previous night's ‘spaghetti and meatballs’ dinner), the spaghetti sauce, the mozzarella cheese and the last bun that was in the house.  I had just finished toasting the bun and was in the process of moving it from the toaster-oven to a pan.  There I intended to add the meatballs, sauce and cheese before reinserting the whole concoction into the toaster-oven for a few minutes, at the "top brown" setting, so as to melt the cheese and warm everything up. 

Kale: What Is It and How Do I Cook It?

You’ve probably seen kale at the salad bar—not necessarily in the salads but underneath the salads.  It’s practically indestructible and also cheap, with thick stems and strong, curly leaves. 

Kale is often a deep green, but it can also have some purple or blue streaks.  It’s sold in bunches in the fresh vegetable sections of most stores, and it holds up well in the fridge.  Avoid bunches that look dried out or have yellowish leaves.

Do You Prefer Convenience or Taste?

When I was growing up, my mother went through a phase of buying Swanson Frozen TV Dinners for the family.  She loved the idea of sliced turkey, mashed potatoes and green peas organized in their own compartments on a lightweight aluminum tray.  Taste was a distant third to convenience and novelty. 

I didn’t go that route.  Once I realized that food could be more than just something to put in my mouth, I wanted good tastes.  The Meatball Sandwich I discovered at a take-out counter on New York’s West 43rd Street, just down the block from my first real job, tasted better than any homemade food I had in my youth.

The Birthday Dinner

Lasagna with Meatballs (photo by Andy Mills)

We have a tradition in our family that whenever someone has a birthday, he or she gets to pick the Sunday dinner menu, and I will be the personal chef.  With kids I can usually count on Homemade Pizza as the object of desire.  Other choices over the years have included Eggplant Parmesan (from an adult vegetarian), Greek Salad (from a junior vegetarian), Noodle/Meatball Soup and Spicy Pork Noodles.  When it’s my birthday, I always pick Blinis because everyone likes them, and Kevin (my cookbook co-author) will make them.

Last week Andy, who was celebrating his 14th birthday and who I thought was a committed vegetarian, surprised me with his choice: Lasagna with Meatballs.