Spinach Spaghetti
Mr. & Mrs. BBQ!
How can you rebel against your parents in your thirties? Become a vegetarian! (Especially if your parents are BBQ aficionados like mine.) When I was pregnant with my daughter, we bought a ranch about an hour outside of Austin. I had read too many “Year in Provence” books and thought it would be charming. So, when the ranch’s previous owners offered us their horses, goats and pig “for free”, these city slickers thought, “well, doesn’t that sound fun?!”. Let me tell you, there’s nothing like getting speared in your pregnant belly by a dumb goat named Karl. I hated the goats and threatened to make cabrito many times. The horses were insane and unrideable, but made good yard art. And, the pig? Well, I did fall l in love with him.
Our pig’s name was Ed and he was enormous. The previous owners had let him sleep IN THE HOUSE when it was cold. We weren’t going to do that, but when temperatures dropped we did set him up in a greenhouse with a bed of hay, a heat lamp, and a bunch of tortillas to snack on. Ed was incredibly social. He was a good hang. When my husband would be out chopping cedar with a chainsaw, Ed would be right next to him like a good swine assistant. One time Ed accidentally got locked in the tack room where we kept all of the animals’ food. We estimate that he ate maybe 60 pounds of food before we found him! We opened the door and he ran out, drank water for like 20 minutes, and then passed out for 2 days. I called the previous owners and said, “um, I think we killed your pig”. They were both veterinarians and said, “they call it ‘eating like a pig’ for a reason, he’ll be o.k.”. And, he was! After we sold the ranch, Ed moved to Austin to live with his former owners in an adorable mid-century style pig house in their front yard. We would visit from time to time. Last update I heard was that Ed got so fat that they had to give him a facelift so that he could see (good thing they were vets!). Ed was too heavy to lift, so they knocked him out on their kitchen floor for the procedure. Post-op went well, and that’s the story of how Ed Got His Groove Back! (TM)
This was a while ago so I assume that Ed is probably no longer with us. But, my relationship with him certainly made me question eating meat, especially since I consider pork to be the most delicious kind. For about ten years I was a full vegetarian, now I’m more flexible - especially since I’m enjoying Mom’s recipes. However, I have certainly eaten more than my fair share of coleslaw at BBQ restaurants!
When I was little I couldn’t say the word “animal” so I said “amala”. Mom and Dad thought this was cute so they didn’t correct me. I guess they forgot about it because I went to grade school saying “amala” and was promptly corrected and thoroughly embarrassed! I remember going for pizza at Mariakakis that night, sitting in the booth and saying over and over, “animal! animal! animal!” with conviction.
Sometime I’ll write about Mom and BBQ, but the topic is too daunting for now. So, today’s dish is for the amalas: Vegetarian Spinach Spaghetti. It’s the ultimate comfort food and what Mom would serve when my sister and I brought our vegetarian friends home from school. One Spring Break, my friend Missy came to Chapel Hill with me and admiringly remarked “does everything your Mom make have cheese, butter, or sour cream?!” Um, yes it does! You’re welcome!
SPINACH SPAGHETTI
2 pkgs frozen chopped spinach [10 oz each or 2 lb fresh makes 20 oz. ]
2 beaten eggs
1 c. sour cream
½ c. milk
4 T. grated Parmesan
4 tsp. minced dried onion
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
1 lb. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
8-10 oz. thin spag, broken, cooked, and drained
Grated parmesan on top
Cook spinach and drain well. Combine eggs, sour cream, milk, parmesan, onion, salt and pepper. Add cheese and mix well. Add spinach and spaghetti and mix well again.
Turn into lightly greased 9x13x2” baking dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan.
Bake, covered at 350 for 15 min. Uncover, bake 15-20 min more.
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