Yooper Food

Hamburger Casserole

Ben’s Supper Casserole

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 8-oz package noodles
• ¼ cup green onion, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp. green pepper, chopped
• ½ cup sour cream
• 1 cup large-curd cottage cheese
• 1 8-oz. package cream cheese
• 2 8-oz. cans tomato sauce
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 1 tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper

Cook the noodles according to the package directions; drain, and blanch with hot water. Set aside. Melt butter in a heavy skillet, and cook the beef until it loses its red color. Drain off excess fat. Stir in tomato sauce, salt, and pepper; then remove from heat. Combine cheeses, sour cream, onion, and green pepper. Spread one half of the noodles in a buttered casserole dish, and cover with half the cheese and sour cream mixture. Repeat. Spread meat mixture in an even layer over the top. cover casserole tightly with foil, and bake in a moderate (350 F) oven for 20 minutes. Uncover, and bake another 10 minutes.

Butter Bean Casserole

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 1 can butter beans (#2 can)
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 tbsp. cooking oil
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper
• ¼ tsp. paprika
• 1 dash nutmeg

Note: You may use uncooked lima beans in lieu of the butter beans. If so, cover them with water and boil until tender. Drain, and set aside. Thoroughly mix the hamburger, pepper, salt, nutmeg, and egg. Form into meatballs about the size of apricots. Brown the meatballs in a skillet, along with some cooking oil or margarine. Add the tomato paste to the butter beans or lima beans, then stir in the paprika and the sour cream. Last, add the browned meatballs, discarding any fat left in the skillet. Pour into a greased casserole dish and bake for 25-30 minutes at 350 F. May be served hot or cold.

Carbondale Casserole

• 1 lb. hamburger
• ½ lb. elbow macaroni
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 1 can niblet-style corn with pimento, drained
• 1 can tomatoes (#2 can)
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1 tsp. Accent
• ¼ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper
• ¼ tsp. garlic powder

Sauté the hamburger until it is golden brown. While that is being done, boil the macaroni in slightly salted water until it is tender. Drain the macaroni and combine it with the hamburger. Add the onion, tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Accent. Then, fold in the corn. Place this mixture in a casserole dish, and bake in a preheated 350 F oven for 45 minutes. May also be served on hamburger buns.

Cedar River Recipe

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 2 cups wild rice, cooked
• ½ cup dried bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 8-oz. can tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp. butter or margarine
• 1 tbsp. onion, chopped fine
• ½ cup celery, chopped fine
• ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 dash nutmeg

Put the hamburger into a large mixing bowl. Add the onion, celery, black pepper, salt, and nutmeg. Mix it thoroughly, then stir in the tomato sauce. In another mixing bowl, beat the egg with rotary beater until it is light and lemon colored. Add the rice, and mix thoroughly. Press half the rice-egg mixture around the sides and over the bottom of a well-greased casserole dish. Reserve the other half of the rice-egg mixture to go over the top. Place this casserole under the broiler for about five minutes, or until the rice begins to brown, and is set firmly around the sides. Remove from the oven, and add the meat mixture carefully, using a rubber spatula to spread it evenly. Cover with the remainder of the rice-egg mixture, and sprinkle the bread crumbs over the top. Dot with the butter or margarine. Bake at 350 F for about 45 minutes. Just before serving, place under the broiler for a few seconds to brown the crumbs on top.

Deer Hunter’s Pie

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 4 large boiled potatoes
• 2 large onions
• 3 large tart apples
• ½ cup bread crumbs
• 1 cup beef stock
• ¼ tsp. grated nutmeg
• ¼ tsp. pepper
• ¼ tsp. salt

Peel and slice the potatoes, onions, and apples 1/8-inch thick. Sauté the hamburger in a skillet until it is lightly browned and completely separated. Arrange a layer of potatoes over the bottom of a casserole dish. Follow it with a layer of meat, a layer of onions, and a layer of apples. Repeat until you have used up all of the ingredients. Heat the beef stock, then add the nutmeg, pepper, and salt. Stir well so that all of the salt is dissolved. Pour this over the top, and add little dabs of butter if you like. Bake in a 350 F oven for 45 minutes.

Hamburger-Cabbage Casserole

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 2 lbs. cabbage
• ½ cup bread crumbs
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tbsp. dehydrated onion
• 1 tsp. sugar
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper

Brown the hamburger and cook until it is all separated. Add the onion, and cook for a few minutes longer. Remove from heat. Beat the eggs until they are lemon yellow, add the milk gradually and continue beating. Add the sugar to the milk and eggs. Stir in the hamburger. Add the salt and pepper. Mix well. Slice the cabbage very fine. Cover with water and cook for 7 minutes; then drain, discarding the water. Place the boiled cabbage in a deep, greased casserole dish. Pour the hamburger mixture over the cabbage. Sprinkle the top with bread crumbs. Bake in a 350 F oven for 45 minutes. The bread crumbs should become golden brown during this cooking time. If not, place the casserole under the broiler for a few minutes before serving.

Hamburger Hot Pot

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 1 can Spam
• 1 8-oz. package medium-wide egg noodles
• 1 can red kidney beans (#2 can, drained)
• 1 cup sliced whole mushrooms
• ¼ cup green pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 2 cups water
• 2 tbsp. butter
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. ground pepper
• 1 tsp. Accent

Sauté the hamburger until it is separated into pieces about the size of pecans, and slightly browned. Cut the Spam into 1-inch cubes. 0Combine the hamburger with all of the other ingredients in a casserole dish. The noodles are put into this mixture just as they come from the package - no precooking. Toss the ingredients to mix them thoroughly. Cover the casserole, and bak in a 375 F oven for a half hour. Remove the cover from the casserole, and turn the ingredients over with a spatula so that they will reap the benefit of the juice which has accumulated. Bake for another half hour without a cover, stirring occasionally to insure even cooking of the noodles.

Ingalls Casserole

• 1 lb. ground chuck
• 1 8-oz. package elbow macaroni
• ½ cup onion, chopped
• 1 package frozen corn
• ½ lb. American process cheese
• 1 tbsp. butter or margarine
• 1 can condensed tomato soup
• 1 tbsp. mustard
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper

Cook the macaroni in 3 quarts of boiling, salted water. Melt the butter in a skillet, add the onions and cook until transparent. Add the meat, and continue to cook until it loses its reddish color. Set aside to cool. Cut the cheese into ¼-inch cubes; and add the cheese, the macaroni, mustard, corn, salt, pepper, and tomato soup. Stir in the mixture of meat and onion. Place in a casserole dish, and bake at 350 F for one hour. Serve hot.

Macaroni & Meatballs

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 3 tbsp. flour
• 1 tbsp. dehydrated onion
• 3 tbsp. Parmesan-Romano cheese
• 2 egg yolks, beaten with 1 tbsp. water
• 8 oz. elbow macaroni
• 3 quarts rapidly boiling water, slightly salted
• 1½ cups milk
• 3 tbsp. butter
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. nutmeg

Melt the butter in a skillet. Add the hamburger and the dehydrated onion. Cook until the meat is slightly browned and well separated. Remove the meat from the butter by straining it. Return the butter to the skillet. Over low heat, add the flour to the butter, and stir until it is smooth. Add the milk, salt, and nutmeg. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens to a rather heavy-bodied cream sauce. Remove from heat and allow it to cool. Stir in the egg yolks and cheese. Add the browned hamburger to the sauce. Put the macaroni in the water, and cook for 10 minutes, or until tender. Drain, and place in a greased casserole dish. Pour the meat sauce over the macaroni, and place in a 350 F oven for 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Raw Potato Casserole

• ½ lb. ground chuck
• ½ lb. lean ground pork
• 3 cups raw potatoes, diced in ½-inch pieces
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 8-oz. can mushroom stems and pieces
• 1 tbsp. flour
• 1 can condensed tomato soup
• 2 tbsp. butter or margarine
• ½ tsp. salt
• 4 twists of pepper mill

Mix the ground meat with the tomato soup, salt, and pepper. Work in the flour. Form into meatballs about the size of golf balls. Melt the butter in a skillet, and brown the meatballs on all sides. Place the meatballs on the bottom of a greased casserole dish. Mix the mushrooms, onion, and raw potatoes very well, then pour over the meatballs. Cover with aluminum foil, and bake at 350 F for 45 minutes, then remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes. Serve hot.

Red Letter Day Casserole

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 8 cooked beets, peeled & coarsely chopped
• 8 medium-sized potatoes, coarsely chopped
• 8 cooked carrots, coarsely chopped
• 2 tbsp. butter
• ¼ cup soup stock
• 1 tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper
• 1 tsp. Accent

Sauté the hamburger until it is in pieces the size of pecans, and slightly brown. Drain any excess fat. Add the vegetables and the spices. Place in a well-greased casserole dish. Dot the top with pieces of butter. Add the stock. Place in a preheated 350 F oven and bake for a half hour.

Rice Casserole

• 1½ lbs. hamburger
• 3 slices bacon, cut into ¼-inch pieces
• 1½ cups precooked rice
• ½ cup onion, chopped fine
• 1 green pepper, cut into ¼-inch pieces
• 1 can tomato juice (#2 can)
• ¼ tsp. thyme
• ¼ tsp. sweet basil
• ½ tsp. paprika

Sauté the bacon in a skillet until slightly browned. Pour away most of the fat. Add the onion and continue to sauté until the onion is slightly transparent. Add the hamburger to the onion and bacon, along with the thyme and basil, and cook for a few minutes longer, until the meat loses its reddish color. Remove from heat, and add the tomato juice. Stir in the rice just as it comes from the package. Add most of the green pepper, reserving a few pieces. Place the entire mixture in a casserole dish, and sprinkle the paprika over the top. Place the casserole in a 350 F oven for a half hour, uncovered. Five minutes before removing from the oven, sprinkle the reserved green pepper over the top for color. Serve right from the casserole dish.

Walnut Meatball Casserole

• 2 lbs. hamburger
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 3 eggs, beaten
• ¾ cup milk
• ½ cup boiling water
• 1 package dehydrated French onion soup

Mix the hamburger, walnuts, bread crumbs, eggs, and milk thoroughly. Form into 1” diameter balls and brown them a few at a time. Shaking the skillet back and forth slowly over the frame will assure even browning. Mix the dehydrated onion soup with the boiling water, and pour over meatballs. Place in a preheated 350 F oven for one half hour. Add more water if necessary. If you want additional gravy, remove the meatballs, add ¾ cup of water with tablespoon of cornstarch mixed in it, simmer for five minutes longer, and return the meatballs to the gravy. For variation, you can substitute blanched Virginia peanuts, cashew nuts, pecans, or pine nuts for the walnuts.

Western Bean Casserole

• 1 lb. hamburger
• 1 can pork & beans (#4 can)
• 1 large onion
• 1 tsp. prepared mustard
• ½ cup catsup
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• ¼ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper

Sauté the hamburger until it is quite brown and separated. Drain off any excess fat. Add the beans and the other ingredients. Stir well, taking care not to mash up the beans in the process. Place in a casserole dish, cover, and place in a 350 F preheated oven for 40 minutes. For a variation, use only a #2 can of pork & beans, and add either a #2 can of butter beans, black-eyed peas, chick peas, or lima beans

Yamburger Casserole

• ¾ lb. ground chuck
• ¾ lb. lean ground pork
• 2 cans yams (#2 can) or sweet potatoes, drained
• 6 rings pineapple
• ¼ cup dried currants
• ¼ cup muscat raisins
• 2 tbsp. butter
• ½ tsp. salt
• 4 twists of pepper mill

Mix the ground chuck, the pork, the salt, and the pepper together, and form into six meat patties about the same size as the pineapple rings. Melt the butter in a skillet and brown the meat patties on each side. Mash the yams with a potato masher until they are fluffy. Add the raisins and the currants, and stir very well. Butter the bottom and sides of a deep baking dish, and place the mashed yam mixture on the bottom. Cover the top with the pineapple rings, pushing each down into the mixture about a half inch. Place one hamburger patty on each of the pineapple rings. Bake in a preheated 350 F oven for about a half hour.

Visit our Sister Site: Pasties, Plain & Simple