30 December 2016

I Revisit One of My Earliest Posts


In the Pan


Close-up Showing Non Stick Properties and Crust
The month that I started my blog, I posted my recipe for baked spaghetti and cheese.

I referred to it as the The Ultimate Comfort Food.

On a lark, I decided to try cooking it in a preheated (350°F, heated in the oven) cast iron pan.

It turned out marvelously well.

I used two pans, one of which had a slightly less robust seasoning.

There was a small amount of sticking, but only in a few places, but the outside crust was glorious.

My basic technique was to heat the pans in a 350°F oven, and cook the spaghetti to very al dente/slightly underdone.

You then rinse the pasta in cold water to stop the cooking.

While this was all going on, I was making the melted cheese mixture (see above link).

Once the pasta and sauce was done, I mixed them together using the mark-1 human hand (with gloves, because otherwise this will be under your fingernails for a week).

I then took the pans out of the oven, sprayed with some oil , and put in the pasta/cheese mixture and pressed it down until it was flat and at the level of the edge of the pan.  (There is some rather satisfying sizzling)

Cook at 450°F for 30-45 minutes. (Yes, it cooks a bit faster)

Unlike the aforementioned recipe, there is no need to cook covered, and then uncover.

I love playing with cast iron.

You might also want to do this in a dutch oven.

3 comments :

Stephen Montsaroff said...

Missing critical ingrediant -- chopped onions.

I find that cuisinarding (is that a verb) various cheese together and mixing (using mark-1 human hands, without gloves so you can lick your fingers) -- after sluicing noodles with cold water -- works as well.

Also add a little mixed melted butter and flour -- for the decadent, who needs arteries fell.

Matthew Saroff said...

I use gloves because I find that the cheese ends up under my finger nails.

Adding melted butter and flout sounds intriguing.

Using a Cuisinart is not necessary if you pre melt the cheese and cottage cheese.

Adding onions? Ummmm.....No.

Stephen Montsaroff said...

All cooking should be a quest to use onions and/or garlic.

My method requires no pre melt.

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