Dear Readers,
For years my mother prepared the most delicious spaghetti and meat sauce that filled the kitchen with tantalizing aroma. I came home from school and there was the pot, the only pot used for that purpose. Mom was not Italian but rather from Philadelphia where she led an impoverished childhood. Spaghetti was a staple that would last for several days and got more delicious by the day. The pasta in the 1940s and 50s was dry and packaged in long boxes. Fresh pasta was not on the supermarket shelves at that time.
It's a pleasure sharing this recipe with you with the hope that you and your family will enjoy it as we did growing up.
1 box of Spaghettini (extra thin pasta)
1 can of tomato paste
1 large can of tomato sauce
1 large can of peeled tomatoes
1 medium can of chopped mushrooms
2 bay leaves
4 garlic cloves chopped - 4 sections from the head
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 lb. of chopped sirloin
1 large onion chopped
6 beef marrow bones
2 large Polish sausages cut up
This sauce will be thick and meaty which is what you want for a winter's meal.
Follow the directions on the box of pasta cooking it as you like either firm or soft.
Saute the sausages for a few minutes in the oil until the meat oozes juices and begin to brown. Add the garlic cloves, sirloin, onion and saute on a medium flame with the sausages for 8 minutes stirring a few times. Add the marrow bones laying them across the meat mixture. Add the rest of the ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste. I use the seasoned pepper and seasoned salt. Cook the meat sauce on low for 1 1/2 hours to blend the flavors. This is a simple meal to prepare and the aroma will drive you wild.
Serve hot garlic bread and a green salad with the pasta with Parmesan or Romano cheese.
I'll be thinking of you!
Best, Denny
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Denny's Corner
Dear Readers,
About 6 years ago a physician in New York City who specializes in bone care X-rayed both my hands. The X-rays revealed that my thumb joints were worn away. Pivoting, swiveling and moving the thumbs caused the joints to rub together. As a result the pain increased and was intense. Daily activities such as opening a jar, pulling plastic off a container, brushing the dog, opening the doorknobs were painful to execute.
The hand is made up of many tiny bones plus larger ones. If the thumbs are compromised we'll have obstacles carrying out the simplest of tasks and in addition - pain.
As the years passed and the pain got more intense another bone doctor suggested trying cortisone shots to the thumb joints before considering surgery. He cautioned me that the shots may buy only a little time, perhaps a few months, maybe even one year of relief.
The procedure is simple. Here is a walk through:
First you lie down on the office gurney. You extend your arm to a comfortable outstretched position. The nurse swabs your hand with a brownish antiseptic that feels cool. The doctor has your X-rays in front of him on a lightbox. Then he asks the nurse to raise your thumb to open up the joint. That hurts but is bearable. He injects lidocaine, a numbing agent, into the joint. You feel the injection but the area soon numbs. After 30 seconds he injects the cortisone. The injection lasts a minute or less. The office procedure is over at that point. The nurse slips a small bandaide over the needle puncture.
Over the next 30 hours my hand ached. Then a miracle, the pain in my hand subsided and almost disappeared. The cost to me was $127 not including the first consultation with the doctor.
Is the hand not the single most important appendage of our body?
A doctor once said to me 'we take better care of our cars than ourselves'. So true.
All the best, Denny
About 6 years ago a physician in New York City who specializes in bone care X-rayed both my hands. The X-rays revealed that my thumb joints were worn away. Pivoting, swiveling and moving the thumbs caused the joints to rub together. As a result the pain increased and was intense. Daily activities such as opening a jar, pulling plastic off a container, brushing the dog, opening the doorknobs were painful to execute.
The hand is made up of many tiny bones plus larger ones. If the thumbs are compromised we'll have obstacles carrying out the simplest of tasks and in addition - pain.
As the years passed and the pain got more intense another bone doctor suggested trying cortisone shots to the thumb joints before considering surgery. He cautioned me that the shots may buy only a little time, perhaps a few months, maybe even one year of relief.
The procedure is simple. Here is a walk through:
First you lie down on the office gurney. You extend your arm to a comfortable outstretched position. The nurse swabs your hand with a brownish antiseptic that feels cool. The doctor has your X-rays in front of him on a lightbox. Then he asks the nurse to raise your thumb to open up the joint. That hurts but is bearable. He injects lidocaine, a numbing agent, into the joint. You feel the injection but the area soon numbs. After 30 seconds he injects the cortisone. The injection lasts a minute or less. The office procedure is over at that point. The nurse slips a small bandaide over the needle puncture.
Over the next 30 hours my hand ached. Then a miracle, the pain in my hand subsided and almost disappeared. The cost to me was $127 not including the first consultation with the doctor.
Is the hand not the single most important appendage of our body?
A doctor once said to me 'we take better care of our cars than ourselves'. So true.
All the best, Denny
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