Baked Spaghetti - Tribute to Ate Carol

Thinking as far back as I can remember, I can't really say that I have had the pleasure of actually tasting my cousin, Ate Carol's much talked about baked spaghetti. One thing I do know is that spaghetti is an easy family-style dinner that because it is so easy to make, it is also easy to put one's own twist to it. In my family, there are a few versions floating around--all of which are delicious in their own right!

Ate Carol's baked spaghetti recipe was handed to my family by Ate Carol herself, then passed on to my mom who has been making it that way. I don't have the actual measurements, but I'm listing the ingredients below. Everything is pretty much done "to taste" and what better way to learn how to cook, than to continue tasting your creation.

1. Boil half a box of thin spaghetti and cook al dente.

2. Prepare meat sauce by sauteeing in oil and chopped onions approximately 1 lb of ground beef. Let the beef cook through. Season with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Once the beef has excreted some of its oils and juices, add in one can of tomato paste (for a less dry outcome, use one small can of tomato sauce instead). Cook until beef is well done.

3. Mix the cooked spaghetti with the meat sauce. Set aside.

4. Prepare the bechamel (white) sauce by melting half a cup (one stick) of butter (not margarine). Add about 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour to make a small ball of butter and flour. The mixture will "ball up" as the flour is mixed in with the butter. Add one cup of milk slowly, mixing to ensure that the white sauce is thickening. Add more milk if the consistency is too thick. Remove from heat while sauce is thick, but not too runny. If sauce gets thick, you may use chicken stock instead to thin out, to avoid having to use too much milk.

5. Assemble the spaghetti in a pyrex dish. Ladle out the spaghetti and red sauce mixture onto dish. Pour the white sauce on top. Sprinkle cheese (mozarella or similar) on top of the white sauce and bake in the oven at 375 degrees until cheese melts.

6. Enjoy with garlic bread.

This baked spaghetti version pictured here is my other cousin, Paul's version of baked spaghetti. White sauce was not used, but instead, after the spaghetti and red sauce was placed in the pyrex dish, cheesy-cheese (Velveeta or Kraft American or cheddar cheese) was generously placed on top. Bake until all cheese has melted.

Perfect for potlucks, parties, gatherings. Leftovers are easy lunchable items and warmed up in the microwave, it still tastes like new! Very economical!