“All right mom, I’ll make your damn spaghetti!”

My mother was being very picky one day. She always thinks that there’s enough supplies in the house for a specific recipe and demands it for lunch one day, even though we only have like one ingredient for it. Last week, she demanded spaghetti because she saw some pasta in the cupboard. I told her that I don’t know how to make spaghetti and that we have nothing for it, but she still insisted on spaghetti. So, I drove to the nearest Safeway and scrounged for stuff that I thought would be good in spaghetti. Here’s my Scrappy Spaghetti recipe—you can all thank my pushy mama.

Scrappy Spaghetti

• ground beef (1 lb.)
• garlic cloves (2-3, depending on taste)
• fire-roasted tomatoes (1 can)
• tomato sauce (1/2 can—but all depends on taste, add more if tomato flavor isn’t strong enough for your liking)
• Marsala cooking wine (splash)
• herbs (of your choice): rosemary, thyme, oregano
• seasoning: garlic powder, salt, coarse pepper

I sauteed the beef in butter and olive oil first until it’s broken down. Then I splashed it with the Marsala to de-glaze. Then the garlic, then the herbs, and then the tomatoes. Let these simmer before adding the tomato sauce. Then, season to taste! Let it come to a boil, and then leave to simmer. Taste often! If the tomato sauce is too much, add some water (or broth) and dilute it.

I also served up instant garlic toast because I found “Garlic Spread” in my cupboard too. I fed my mother her spaghetti, and she was very pleased. And to be honest, so was I—I have my very own meat sauce recipe now :)