Recipe: Czech Style Macaroni Variations Big Food, Big Garden, Big Life

Comfort food

The recipes in this cookbook are sometimes not as clear as they might be. (That’s what happens when you translate Czech to English.) Pictured is the first variation. The instruction to “make several layers” obviously refers to layers of macaroni, cheese and vegetables.

CZECH STYLE MACARONI VARIATIONS

From M.L. Jandacek, Czech National Cook Book (1974)

MACARONI AND VEGETABLES INSTEAD OF MEAT

Place a layer of cooked macaroni in a well greased pan. Then sprinkle macaroni with grated cheese. Make several layers ending with cheese. Pour white sauce over top. Make sauce as follows: Melt 1 tablespoon butter and add 1 tablespoon flour and mix together. Then mixing constantly, add 1 cup hot milk and let cook until thick and smooth and add a little salt and pepper. Cover pan and bake 10 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 minutes longer.

MACARONI WITH HAM

Place a layer of cooked macaroni in a well greased pan. Then add a layer of cooked ham or other smoked meat. Make several layers. The ham can be flavored with mustard or chopped onions. Beat 1 egg with 1 cup milk and pour over macaroni and bake in a hot oven 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to suit your taste. The ham may be salty enough and it will not be necessary to salt.

MACARONI WITH HORSERADISH

Melt 2 tablespoons butter and add 1 teaspoon chopped green pepper and 1 teaspoon chopped onion and simmer 5 minutes. Then add 1 tablespoon flour, 1 cup soup, 1 cup cooked and strained tomatoes, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon horseradish, salt and pepper to suit your taste. Cut up cold cooked leftover meat and warm in gravy., then pour over cooked macaroni. You can add a little garlic for flavor.

MACARONI WITH LEFTOVER MEAT

Cut up cold, cooked, leftover meat and mix with cooked macaroni. Put in a well greased pan and pour brown, white, or tomato gravy over top. Sprinkle bread crumbs on top and bake in a medium oven about 30 minutes. You can use fresh mushrooms instead of meat.

MACARONI CROQUETTES

Mix cooked macaroni with thick tomato gravy. Mix in grated cheese. Form small balls, dip in egg, roll in bread crumbs, and fry in hot fat.

MACARONI PUDDING I

Cook macaroni 10 minutes, drain, and add hot milk (½ pint milk for ¼ lb macaroni) and cook 20 minutes and remove from fire. Beat 4 eggs with 1 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon butter. Add to macaroni ad add 1 teaspoon vanilla. Pour into a well greased pan and bake in a slow oven about ½ hour. Serve with cream.

MACARONI PUDDING II

Mix together 1 cup cooked macaroni, 1 cup bread crumbs, 1 cup grated cheese, 1 teaspoon chopped parsley, ½ cup tomatoes, 1 tablespoon chopped onion, salt, ¼ teaspoon paprika, 1/3 cup water from macaroni and 3 eggs. Pour into a well greased pan and set pan in a pot of hot water, and bake in a hot oven 35 minutes.

MACARONI WITH CHOPPED PORK

Cook broken up macaroni in boiling salt water and drain. Line a pan with pork (sekaniny), salt and pepper and then add a layer of macaroni. Pour 3 cups tomato gravy over top and bake 1 hour. For this recipe you can use 1 box macaroni and 1 lb meat or cut recipe in half. You can also use rice instead of macaroni.