It’s April!  Spring has finally sprung and if we’re lucky, the weather will reflect that.  The month of April gets its name from a Latin word meaning “to open (bud).”  Plants really begin to grow from all the April showers.  We celebrate Easter this month, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from his death.  Special sunrise services at many churches help Christians celebrate the most holy of Christian days. Easter egg hunts at school was a favorite activity for my kindergarten and first grade students.  Teachers would pair up with each other with one teacher doing Easter crafts with two classes while the other teacher would hide the eggs.  Such fun memories for the students AND for the teachers! The first day of April was always fun with small children.  They loved to “trick” the teacher on April Fool’s Day.  I learned after my first year of teaching to make an agreement that we could only trick each other the first hour of school.  If we didn’t honor that rule, the whole day was a day of tricks.  After the first hour of tricking, it was time to work on our colors, numbers, and alphabet.

    This month’s recipe is Baked Spaghetti.  When I was first diagnosed with Celiac disease, I thought my days of eating pasta were over.  Fortunately, companies are really adding to the list of good gluten free  (GF) items that are readily available at supermarkets.  There are some substitutions if you are cooking gluten free, but none are difficult. I have included in parentheses those which I use and recommend.

     Happy Spring!  Happy Easter!  Blessings! 

Peggy Isenhour

 

6 ounces uncooked spaghetti (Barilla gluten free spaghetti noodles)

1 pound ground chuck

1 cup chopped onions

½ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

*½ teaspoon chili powder (Simply Organic Chili Powder at Walmart)

¾ cup shredded Cheddar cheese (shred your own for GF)

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (Lea & Perrins is naturally GF)

1 ¼ cups ketchup

1 tablespoon mustard

¾ cup beef broth (Swanson is GF)

½ cup mozzarella cheese (Great Value and Kraft shredded Mozzarella cheese is GF)

 

Cook spaghetti according to package directions.  Gluten free pasta cooks a little longer, so check the package directions. Do not cook it until it is very soft since it cooks more in the oven.  Drain and set aside.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook ground chuck and onions in a large skillet, stirring until meat browns.  Drain well.  Stir the salt, pepper, chili powder, ¼ cup of the shredded cheddar, the Worcestershire sauce, ketchup and mustard into the meat mixture.  Simmer 5 minutes.  Stir in spaghetti and beef broth.  Spoon mixture into a 9-11 baking dish.  Top spaghetti with remaining ½ cup shredded cheddar and shredded mozzarella.  Bake 20-30 minutes or until cheese begins to brown.

*Always keep chili powder in the refrigerator to retain its flavor and color.