You may remember that Richard Gilmore made his grandmother's casserole one Friday night for his wife Emily, daughter Lorelai and granddaughter Rory. It's actually called Johnny Marzetti, a casserole well-known to Ohioans, invented at a restaurant called
16 oz. package egg noodles
1 T. olive or canola oil
1 T. butter
5 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves , minced
10 oz. can condensed tomato soup
1 10 oz. can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 t. dried or fresh dill
3/4 c. Cheddar cheese, shredded
3/4 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil; cook noodles just under 8 minutes, or until al dente.
In a medium saucepan, heat butter and oil over medium heat. When butter is melted, add mushrooms; stir once to coat them; let cook for about 5 minutes, stirring only once halfway through, so they cook through and get a little bit browned. Remove from saucepan; set aside.
Add ground beef to the pan; cook over medium heat, breaking meat up; when halfway browned, discard any fat; add onion, celery, green pepper and garlic; stir well; stir mushrooms back in; cook until beef is cooked through and onions are soft.
Mix ground beef mixture, noodles, cream of mushroom and tomato soups and dill together in the pasta pot. Add salt to taste; stir in a bit more than half of the cheese. Pour the whole thing into a LARGE baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Bake about 30 minutes. If wanting to brown the top a bit, put it under the broiler for a few minutes at the very end.