Spaghetti Sauce with Corned Beef

I get nostalgic thinking about this recipe because it was the standard spaghetti sauce recipe that would be simmering away on the stove when I was a kid. It wasn't until I was older that I realized that everyone else wasn't on the same page as my family for their spaghetti nights.
This is actually one of the oldest recipes in my family passed down a few generations. It was born out of the post WWII era of affordable (canned) foods and is tastier than you would imagine.
It can be thrown together and heated in about 45min. I actually have an affinity for canned/processed meat and think they can actually be enjoyable (in moderation).

Ingredients:

• 2 cans tomato soup
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 can corned beef (Hereford is my brand of choice)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1 tsp red chili flakes
• basil or oregano (fresh or dry if you want)

Directions:

1. Mix everything in in a sauce pan and simmer on low until heated thoroughly. 
2. Remove bay leaves and serve hot topped with extra cheese. 

Stuffed Potatoes

There is something about the creaminess of the filling mixed with the crust of melted cheese and potato skin that makes me drool over stuffed potatoes. You can pretty much eat them as their own meal depending on what you put in them. This is a fairly standard recipe with cheese, bacon, onion and sour cream but you really don't need more than that for the potato to compete as the tastiest part of the meal. 

I try to make sure that the skin is seasoned well so that the whole thing can be eaten. There is nothing more disappointing than a hollowed out skin sitting on a plate after someone abandoned it for the garbage. 

I find that it is easier to make these over two days (one day to bake and the second to fill).

Ingredients:

• 2 Russet potatoes
• 1/2 a package of bacon
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• Salt, pepper, and garlic salt

Directions:

1. Clean the potatoes then prick them all over with a fork (this will keep them from exploding in the oven).
2. Coat with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic salt.
3. Bake on a cookie sheet at 350 F for an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes.
4. When cool enough - slice each in half lengthwise and scoop the insides into a mixer.
5. Cook the bacon until crisp then soften the onion in the bacon grease (I dumped all the bacon grease in with the potato filling).
6. Chop the bacon in to small pieces.
7. Add the bacon, onions, sour cream and cheese to the mixer.
8. Mix thoroughly.
9. Re-fill the skins with the improved potato.
10. Sprinkle a little extra cheese on the tops.
11. Heat the potatoes at 350 F for about 30 min.
12. When they are starting to look bubbly turn the broiler on low until the tops are nicely browned.
13. Serve hot (not molten hot) with sour cream and fresh scallion.