Friday, November 2, 2012

retro cook-off: mother's little helper

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Family meals in our household growing up were a shared duty. My sister and I were both responsible for at least one meal a week night, as was our dad. My mom usually left a recipe out on the counter with a note, "For dinner." In case we didn't get it.

My FAVORITE dinner to make used all of these readily available, fresh from your refrigerator ingredients.


Who doesn't have a pack of Crescent rolls laying around?

Here is the actual orange recipe card from Mom's orange box. I must have pulled this card out countless dozens of times. Look at the stains, the water marks and the love. Typed on her Smith-Corona.

Without further ado, I bring you Easy Beef and Cheese Pie.




Now for the step by step with pictures!!!! And you will understand how EASY this was, even for a 12-year-old girl.

 Brown and drain the hamburger.



Mix in the spices and egg.



Add your Lawry's Spaghetti Sauce mix to the spaghetti sauce in your Pyrex cup. Okay, the recipe said tomato sauce. I substituted.



 Pat into glass pie pan (Pyrex).



Put your shredded cheddar cheese on top.



Now the hard part. I suck at crust.



Make sure your Crescent Rolls are cold. I left mine out on the counter too long this time. The rolls were sticking to my cutting board. I broke out the flour.



 Cut out some circle holes with a cookie cutter or champagne flute (substitution).



Put the crust on top, brush with reserved egg and put the little cut outy circles on top. Now pop into the oven for 30 minutes on 350.



While waiting for Easy Beef and Cheese Pie to finish cooking, wash up the very few dishes. Another benefit. Before serving, add water to remaining sauce and put in colorful fiesta gravy dish (substitution).



 TA DA!!!


Let stand for about ten minutes. Heat up sauce in microwave. Cut into slices and top with sauce!





Yum Yum. Seriously tasty. My son and husband think this is the bomb. About 1200 calories a slice. Estimation only.



My son is 14 and I have NEVER had him make dinner. What is wrong with parents now-a-days?

The idea for this post originated in Australia with these two bloggers. They posted at noon on Saturday and I posted Friday night (yes, it is confusing). See their Retro Cook-Off Recipes and also links to other bloggers' fabulous concoctions here:
We like to blog about retro stuff with our friends on the world wide web.

Posted by at 8:55 PM

26 comments:

  1. DonnaNovember 2, 2012 at 9:05 PM

    Yey Rebecca! Your Beef and Cheese Pie looks very tasty!! I love the Recipe card - very well used and loved. The sign of a family favourite!
    I would happily sit down to eat this retro dish! Thanks for taking part.x

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    Replies
    1. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 9:29 PM

      I did it! I knew immediately I wanted to make this for you guys because it instantly takes me back to the sixties/seventies. I am enjoying visiting the other blogs. Nice work ladies!

      Delete
    2. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 10:16 PM

      P.S. My manners!!!! Mother would be so ashamed. Donna thank you for co-hosting with Kylie this lovely little retro cooking party from across the Pacific. Nicely done. Your dish gave me a lot of yuchs.

      Delete
  2. A Treasured PastNovember 2, 2012 at 9:16 PM

    Yum, that looks delicious. I think my kids would even eat that. One for the recipe book I would say. Tam x

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    1. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 9:30 PM

      Kids will eat this. In a heartbeat. It is a retro memory for me.

      Delete
  3. KylieNovember 2, 2012 at 9:45 PM

    Hi Rebecca, I think it's lovely you've decided to share a retro recipe from you childhood. I have a family favourite I'll share next time (if there is a next time!)
    I agree with Tam, I think my girls would eat this too. All I need to do is work out what Crescent Rolls are(?) I found so many retro recipes with ingredients in them I've never heard of (all of the highly processed variety!)
    Thanks so much for joining in. I love your art and crafty tiles btw x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 9:48 PM

      If there is a next time, I can break out one of the MANY jello recipes in my Mom's orange box. Some of them quite gross. Crescent Rolls can be found in the refrigerator section of your local grocer. They must sell Crescent Rolls in Australia??!!! I wondered if an Australian would notice those tiles. Ebay and many from Australia. They aren't exactly mid-century modern but it was a phase I was going through at the time.

      Delete
    2. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 10:14 PM

      P.S. Where are my manners Kylie??? Thank you so much for hosting the party! I am having a lot of fun. Everyone should go check out your DE-lightful dish!

      Delete
  4. skiourophileNovember 2, 2012 at 9:59 PM

    I love these old family recipes - I have a file of my grandmother's handwritten recipes which I treasure. Your pie turned out really well! (and I've finally discovered what crescent rolls are).

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    1. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 10:03 PM

      Crescent Rolls are fantastic. There are MANY things you can do with Crescent Rolls. The pie turned out okay. I am terrible at shaping pie crust. My mom is so awesome at it.

      Delete
  5. Dana@Mid2ModNovember 2, 2012 at 10:05 PM

    Your dish really takes me back to my childhood. My mother bought me a Better Homes and Gardens Junior cookbook when I was about 8, and by the time I was in high school, I was helping with a lot of the cooking and baking, even though my mom didn't work. I'm glad she had me do that, because I wasn't totally inept in the kitchen when I got married.

    I love your mother's orange cards. My mother typed hers too, and they were just as stained and well-used.

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    1. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 10:18 PM

      Aren't the cards great!? We used the regular BH&G cookbook a lot. She had some favorites in there. I still use it. I am glad we had the enforced cooking. It also made me somewhat comfortable and competent in the kitchen. I definitely enjoyed it. Much more then the enforced window cleaning. I HATED washing the windows. DANA --- your post cracked me UP! Your dish brings insult and shame to the Swedes. It is a travesty.

      Delete
  6. AllisonNovember 2, 2012 at 10:18 PM

    your mum was no fool!....my dad never even made me toast let alone an evening meal. my night was fridays & i always made savoury mince (hamburger) pie....i wish i had added cheese now...maybe i should revisit that recipe...maybe not!.
    allison x

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    1. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 10:27 PM

      I can't remember if I had a specific night or not?? You made hamburger pie too! The cheese and the Crescent Roll crust really make the meal. My dad typically made spaghetti or tacos. I sometimes made meatloaf. I think everything we made had a base of hamburger. Those were the days.

      Delete
  7. PippaNovember 2, 2012 at 10:45 PM

    Great work Rebecca, this looks yummy and I will give it a go! Really cool of you to join! :)

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    1. UnknownNovember 2, 2012 at 11:15 PM

      I couldn't resist. I almost was way too late, then I rallied and made the magic happen! Loved your entry as well.

      Delete
  8. vintagemovementNovember 3, 2012 at 1:31 AM

    Love it! Thanks for sharing, it looks delicious, a great retro revival dish.
    :) Tina

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    1. UnknownNovember 3, 2012 at 7:43 AM

      Thanks for stopping by! Loved your dish too. Was kind of related to mine. In a weird way.

      Delete
  9. Lakota [Faith Hope and Charity Shopping]November 3, 2012 at 1:56 PM

    This was such a fun challenge. I have to say yours looks far nicer and more edible than my offering - swap you for some Cod in Custard Sauce?

    ReplyDelete
  10. MaxNovember 4, 2012 at 1:07 AM

    mmm, that looks really nice (i was a child of the 70's). i wish, wish wish my nana had kept her recipes for us kid but they were all in her head and so now I'll never know the secret of her amazing yorkshire pudding. but i've started to write down my recipes, in a little retro recipe file, with cards just like those-love it x

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    1. UnknownNovember 4, 2012 at 4:15 PM

      The lost Yorkshire pudding recipe! That is a tragedy. We feel the same way about my Grandma's fudge. No one can make it quite like her. I am glad you are saving your recipes. Your kids will be grateful!

      Delete
  11. LeaNovember 4, 2012 at 6:04 AM

    It looks delicious and i adore the recipe card. Cute.

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    1. UnknownNovember 4, 2012 at 4:16 PM

      The recipe card is the best. I have pictures of some of my favorites which is how I had this one handy for the cook-off!

      Delete
  12. Loo xx from Jumbles and PompomsNovember 5, 2012 at 1:52 AM

    Oh that looks yummy, and, even better, easy to do. Yay, you are a genius! xx

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    Replies
    1. UnknownNovember 5, 2012 at 6:05 AM

      Well, I can't really take the credit. All goes to Mom and where ever she cut that recipe out from.

      Delete

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