Today’s guest post is from Jessica Bernstein. An over-educated former teacher, Jessica Kobrin Bernstein is currently the full-time mom of two small children, as well as the founder of the celebrated parenting blog peekababy. When she’s not writing or running after her kids, she’s encapsulating life into 140 characters or being sucked into trying out new recipes or crafts from Pinterest.
You can connect with Jessic virtually:
pinterest @peekababy
instagram @peekababy
twitter @peekababy
facebook @peekablogpeekababy
Here’s what Jessica has to say:
A quick glimpse into my life.
Walking my 4 3/4 and 7 1/2 year old home from their respective dance classes at the Y:
“Mommy, what’s for dinner?”
“I didn’t have a chance to make anything ahead of time, so I’ll probably just boil some noodles…”
“Plain pasta with sauce? Are you kidding? I think it would be a much better idea if you made that spaghetti thingie with the crunchy top.”
So, there you have it. I have created little food snobs 😉 Luckily, this recipe is neither complicated nor requires any special ingredients. It’s clearly not a health food, but some things just need to be carbs and cheese. I’ve changed it a bit from a family recipe passed down from my Great Aunt Hilda to my Mom and then on to me. It’s still one of my maternal Grandpa’s favorites.
Baked Spaghetti
serves 4-5
Ingredients:
- 1 lb box spaghetti, linguini or cappellini
- 2 bunches fresh raw spinach, washed well and chopped coarsely (optional)
- 2-3 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter
- I 16 oz jar of your favorite sauce (homemade could work too, but I promised little work!)
- ½ cup cornflake crumbs
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Spray a large rectangular glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Parboil spaghetti according to package directions (a couple of minutes tops–or you’ll have a gluey mess after baking.)
4. Drain noodles (if using spinach, place it in the colander before you pour in the spaghetti for quick steaming), rinse quickly and pour back into pot over optional spinach.
5. Mix spaghetti, optional spinach, butter, sauce and 2 cups of the cheese until well combined.
6. Pour spaghetti mixture into baking dish, top with the optional additional cup of cheese and the corn flake crumbs.
7. Bake for 30-45 minutes until mixture is bubbling slightly around the edges and crispy on top.
Be fully prepared for every person that walks by to grab a crispy noodle off the top of the cooling casserole before you serve it.
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