Pie in Your Eye

Discovering a new comfort food is like finding gold. While revisiting some friends living in midtown, I was delighted to be served a beautiful spaghetti pie for a home cooked dinner amidst a sea of flashy restaurants painting Hells Kitchen with neon. My friend, Abe, is a fellow Sconie, so I shouldn't have been surprised that he knows the ways of the casserole world. (I am impressed that he knows them better than I do.)

Abe shared his grandmother's secret recipe with me. Actually, he claims his family doesn't have any secret recipes, but it is so good, it should be.

Spaghetti Pie

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (or morningstar vegetarian crumbles)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped (optional)
1 16 oz. can chopped tomatoes
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
Salt, pepper and sugar to taste
6 oz. spaghetti
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup cottage cheese
6 oz. shredded mozarella

Brown the meat; drain.
Add onion & celery to meat -- cook until tender.
Stir in tomatoes & tomato paste.
Season with salt, pepper, & sugar; mix well.
Simmer for 20 minutes.
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Cook spaghetti according to package directions; drain.
Combine spaghetti with butter, parmesan cheese and eggs; Mix well.
Line a greased 10 in. pie plate with spaghetti mixture to form crust.
Spoon cottage cheese over spaghetti crust.
Top spaghetti and cottage cheese with meat sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
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Bake pie at 325º for 45 minutes (put a cookie sheet underneath since it may overflow).
Serves 6-8